Between Brothers (Pure Redemption: Book One)
by Shen's General
Summary: A year had passed since Metalbeak's death, as Soren was now a Guardian while his brother Kludd lead the Pure Ones, creating a great rift between them. However, an arrival of a new and impending evil will change all that, as the two brothers are brought together by fate, thus beginning a great adventure that will test the bonds between brothers. KxN, SxO, DxG, TxSS, ExOC.
1. The King and His Disloyal Lieutenant

**Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole**

**'_Between Brothers_'**

**by Shen's General**

**A/N: Hey there everybody! My name is Shen's General, a new member of this awestrucking site! I've been coming to this site for nearly two years, reading stories from authors such as yourselves. Thanks to encouragement from Master Crane, Charlie B. Barkin, and Humphrey Loves Kate, I found the courage to finally ask my dad for an account on this site, and he said yes…As for the story at hand, I watched Legend of the Guardians (completely, the last two times it was watched, I was busy), and I've instantly fell in love with it. My favorite character if anyone is Kludd, I guess I have soft spots for avian villains (hence whom I serve). I'm also a fan of the pairing of KluddxNyra (I find Nyra really attractive for an owl). Since there rarely a few fics concerning those two, I am making this story. Before I officially begin, I should explain a few things; first of all, in this story, Kludd is already Metalbeak, for those who would wonder why I skipped ahead, it's because I am basing my story as a part of another author's series of LotG: OoG, you people know him as bluecatcinema. He wrote good stories for this movie, from New Beginnings to Ruffled Feathers to Dark Feelings to Worlds Apart to Digging Deep, which was unfortunately his last story for the movie. For my story, it has took place a year after Metalbeak's death, and after all of bluecatcinema's stories, with the exception of Digging Deep, in which in my storyverse, had never took place (meaning Sylvana do not exist, sorry, DiggerxOC fans), for the sake of a certain pairing (read Mic O'Malley 'Skies of Darkness' to find out who). Speaking of who, in this story, there's also a character from his story, who was gruesomely murdered by you-know-who in his story. Well now that I got everything out of the way all I had to do is this:**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I like to dedicate this story and this first chapter to Master Crane, Charlie B. Barkin, and Humphrey Loves Kate for convincing me to get an account, to Crazybird101 for inspiring me to get a gang, and to bluecatcinema and Mic O'Malley for allowing me to use materials from both their stories and to all the others who pm'ed me, and follow/fave me before even posting a story.**

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Chapter One: The King and His Disloyal Lieutenant

Along the horizons of the craggy peaks of St. Aegolius, the sun sets, making the seemingly forbidden peaks look like a masterpiece. However, forbidden would be the wrong term as the peaks are a current residence of a group of owls known as the Pure Ones, a group reserved for Tytos, a certain breed of owls whom strongly believe that they are above other subspecies of owls. They're also known to be rivals to the legendary Guardians, a group of owls who opposes their view, and believed in mending the broken, and upholding the weak. The Pure Ones fought for dominance and control over the owl kingdoms, while the Guardians fought for order and peace. This war between them had been raged for over centuries and centuries, with causalities on both sides, and the torch of both armies' leaders have been passed on for generations and generations.

Two owls stand out within this history of bloodshed; a Guardian Whiskered Screech Owl known as the Lyze of Keil and a Pure One Sooty Owl whose name had been unknown to this day. In the Battle of the Ice Claws, the battle between those two was so fierce that both of them left a permanent scar on the other. Lyze lost his claw, while the Sooty Owl lost his beak, and had a scarred face. Since that day, the Sooty Owl donned a helm, and dubbed himself Metalbeak, a name that would become one of the most infamous titles in owl history.

It seemed like the reign of Metalbeak would never end, as he had his subjects kidnapped owlets from all over to either have his mate Nyra train them as soldiers to fight the Guardians or have them moon-blinked and make them pickers, slaves forced to pick through pellets to find metal, which would eventually be used to render the Guardians helpless. However, things changed when they kidnapped two Barn Owls from the Forest Kingdom of Tyto, one of them was a firm believer in the Guardians, and was unaffected by the beliefs of the Pure Ones, that same owl would, along with an Elf Owl and the help of one of his captured subjects, escape them and fly off to find the Guardians. However though, the other Barn Owl and brother to that defiler had fallen hard for the ideals of theirs and had, as Nyra would said "exceptional promise", as he and the soldiers were trained, Metalbeak made a deal with one of the Guardians, a Great Gray Owl who sought control over part of the owl kingdom, who went by the name Allomere.

However, unbeknownst to them, the Barn Owl, along with his newfound friends ended up finding The Great Tree of Ga'Hoole and the Guardians and enlists their help in rescuing the owlets that were made slaves. Unfortunately, Allomere, who was dispatched to scout out the area for the owlets, had his comrades killed, and the other Barn Owl gave him two owlets, one of them whom were the brothers' baby sister.

The Guardians (and the Lyze of Keil among them, who now went by the name Ezylryb), outraged by the Pure Ones, took flight into battle with them, but little did they know of the trap the Pure Ones had set for them using the metal (known as flecks) that the Pickers had scavenged, which had a magnetic interference with the owls' gizzard. The owls fell for their trap like leaves on an autumn morning, and were left to be killed off by bats that worked with the Pure Ones, and Metalbeak ended up double-crossing Allomere and had him killed by the same creatures.

Fortunately, the Barn Owl, who had figured out Allomere's treachery from his little sister, set off with his friends, the Elf Owl, whom he escaped with, a Burrowing Owl, an eccentric one they met shortly after their escape from St. Aegolius, and a Great Grey Owl, the lute-playing friend of the Burrowing Owl to St. Aegolius to save them. The Barn Owl, by mastering the art of gizzard flying, a technique passed from Ezylryb himself, was able to take a lamp of fire and fling it at the mechanism that held the flecks, thus evening odds between the Guardians and the Pure Ones.

However, the brother of that Barn Owl, who was always overshadowed by his brother, and was envious of the attention his family gave him, charged at him and they ensued into a fight within the burning forest of Beaks. The Barn Owl tried to deter his brother from the path of the Pure Ones, but he wouldn't heed. The fight escalated to the point where the brother broke his wing and was hanging off the Barn Owl (who was holding onto a branch) on a fallen part of a tree overhanging a patch of fire. The brother begged the Barn Owl to help him, who, with his kind heart, was willing to comply; however, this was a ploy by the brother so he could grab and fling him into the fire, but when he struck, he missed and fell into the patch of fire.

Stricken with grief and anger over his brother's 'death', the Barn Owl charged for Metalbeak, with a burning stick in his talon. Metalbeak, during the brother's quarrel, was confronted by Ezylryb and a small fight ensues, however he had an upper-hand-er-talon on Ezylryb, as he was double-teamed by him and his mate Nyra, and was about to be finished off when the Barn Owl came flying and ramming Metalbeak. The Sooty Owl outmatched the young owlet in both strength and speed and instantly had him against a wall. However, the evil king didn't count on the stick the Barn Owl brought with him, and when he charged for the final blow, he was impaled with the stick and was killed.

Upset by her mate's demise, she, along with the remaining soldiers of their army retreated, giving the victory to the Guardians. The Barn Owl and the Guardians returned home with the owlets in tow and the Barn Owl and his friends were dubbed Guardians. However, little did they know that the brother of the Barn Owl had survived the patch of fire with a charred face, and a deeply-angered spirit. That owl would take Metalbeak's old mask, his sign of power, and would become the new leader of the Pure Ones with Nyra as his second-in-command, and the Barn Owl and his brother would, like the ones before them, ensued a fierce rivalry that would go on for years… Kludd was that brother.

Kludd was a Barn Owl who lived with his family in the Forest Kingdom of Tyto until one night, while 'branching' with his brother, known as Soren, fell to the ground and were captured by two Long-Eared Owls known as Jatt and Jutt. They were later taken to St. Aegolius, where Nyra, the mate of Metalbeak told them that their parents abandoned them and that they were their new family. Her speech had lighted a spark within Kludd's heart, who was enamored by her beauty, and by the ideals of the Pure Ones, that were to him, more real than those dreams of the Guardians his brother always gone on about. When one of the owls, an Elf Owl known as Gylfie tried to complain, Nyra approached the owlet, planning on reprimanding her, when Soren stood up for her; a bit peeved by their defiance, she made them both Pickers, and had her soldiers take them away. Soren tried to reach out to his brother, and Nyra asked Kludd if he would like to join him, and Kludd just denied him, saying he didn't know who he was.

He eventually received training, where he proved to be more experienced than any owls, and impressing Nyra and even Metalbeak. However, Nyra, feeling that his brother should reconsider, went to find him, only to see one of their 'forced' members Grimble trying to help him and Gylfie escape. Grimble tried to fend her off while Soren again plead that his brother come with him, but like before, Kludd refused him and distracted Grimble enough to help Nyra get him off and eventually killing him, in which then, Nyra made Kludd a member of the Pure Ones. Then, he offered to get his and Soren's little sister Eglantine to join them, but all she wanted to find Soren and was eventually moon-blinked, and then sent her with Allomere as a decoy to get the Guardians to come.

When they did, and were eventually freed by Soren, Kludd confronted Soren but his deeply-pained and angered heart led to his downfall when he fell into the fire, and was presumed dead...but little did they know that Kludd found a patch of water not far from where he fell and manage to survive with his entire body intact... however though, a good part in his heart was not so lucky. With Metalbeak's helm upon his head, he returned to the Pure Ones and Nyra, and was made leader and would lead the Pure Ones into many battles with the Guardians, with his own goal being that he kills his brother with his own two talons…

It was a year since that day Metalbeak died, and at midnight, it would be the one year anniversary of Kludd's coronation as king and leader of the Pure Ones, and the day he undertook the late king's name Metalbeak. Kludd, who was overlooking his domain as well as the sunset, smirked, as he remembered that day…

Flashback start

He walked in the large cavern where the Pure Ones were, after walking all night, while the widow queen Nyra was rallying her troops after the disastrous fight back at St. Aegolius when the others noticed him.

"Who is that?" Asked Jatt, one of the two Long-Eared Owls that kidnapped Soren and Kludd.

"And why is he wearing Metalbeak's helmet? Jutt, Jatt's cousin and partner in crime, added.

Indeed, Kludd had donned the mask of Metalbeak he had found after 'cooling off' from the burn marks he had suffered.

"Blasphemy!" Screeched a grass owl Pure One. "Let's make him pay for such affrontery!"

"Silence!" Yelled Nyra at that Pure One, and then she regains composure as she instantly recognized the masked figure. "Kludd. It is good to see you survived. And now you wear the helmet of Metalbeak."

"Not by choice." Kludd said quietly in a bitter voice. "I wear this helmet because I must, not because I want to. My face was burned when I fell into the fire." His anger boiled a little remembering how that came to be.

"Is that all?" Nyra grinned, as she saw a likeness between him and her late husband, and the fire in his eyes. "Or was it fate?"

"Fate?" Kludd repeated, a little confused.

"Yes." Nyra nodded. "I always knew you had exceptional promise, young one. And seeing you with that helmet, there is no doubt in my mind that you were meant to take Metalbeak's place, as our new leader."

"Leader?" Kludd said again in a bitter voice, although a little shocked

"Him?" Jatt yelled in disbelief.

"He's just a kid!" Jutt added. It was true, Kludd was considered younger than most owls the Pure Ones would have as leaders over the years.

"Fool!" Nyra screeched at Jutt, a little angered by the Long-Eared Owl's view on the idea. "This 'kid' has more to offer our cause than you and your dimwitted cousin put together!"

Both cousins cringed a little by the queen's angry gaze.

Nyra, after regaining her composure again, turned back to Kludd.

"Well, Kludd?" She asked. "Will you consent to becoming our new lord and master?"

Kludd considered it for a moment, if he were to become the Pure Ones' new leader, he would have the means and the know-how to wreak his vengeance upon his younger brother, something he never knew he wanted till he heard Nyra's speech.

"I will." He nodded.

"Excellent." Nyra smiled, deep inside, her partly black heart leapt for joy at his agreement. "Pure Ones, bow to our new leader. All hail the new Metalbeak!"

"Metalbeak! Metalbeak! Metalbeak! Metalbeak!" The Pure Ones started chanting, as they did for their previous leader.

Under his helm, Kludd grin a cold grin as he basked in the greatness he had been seeking ever since his father started ignoring him for his brother, and his dream of killing his brother had a possibility of becoming a reality.

Flashback ends

Kludd was so caught up in his memories that he failed to recognize one of his servants calling out his name.

"Uh…Lord Metalbeak?" the Pure One nervously enquired.

Kludd instantly snapped out of his daze and turned around with a slightly embarrassed, slightly annoyed expression, "Huh? Why are you here?" he asked.

"Well…Lieutenant Nix would like to speak with you." The servant answered.

Kludd slightly snarled when he heard that name, Nix was a grass owl and a fellow trainee when Nyra was training them. They were practically rivals when Nyra sent all of them to chase a little blue bird. Nix would have easily beaten Kludd, hadn't Kludd resort to throwing the Pure Ones' banner in his face. Since then, Kludd and Nix had hated each other almost as much as Kludd hated Soren, in fact, Nix was the same owl who accused him of insulting their leader's memory. And when the Pure Ones started cheering their new leader, Nix just stood there, glaring hatefully at the Barn Owl with malice and envy.

Despite all this, he wondered why Nix wanted to talk with him. "[Sighs] Send him in…" he ordered the servant.

"Right away, sir." He instantly flew off and a few moments later, a grass owl, donning a typical Pure Ones helmet, came in with a spiteful look that matched Kludd's as he entered. They both stood in silence until Kludd broke it.

"Well, what is it that you want, lieutenant?" He asked a little annoyed.

"I am here with a progress report, we are almost done with the preparations for the celebration of their glorious leader's first year." Nix answered, with a bit of mocking in the last few words.

"Almost? Why hadn't you finish yet? Midnight is in a few hours!" Kludd snarled, as his already little patience wearing thin.

"Well, some of them are taking a little time to grieve for their lost king, unlike a certain _someone_." He muttered with fierce indifference

Kludd was angered by such accusations, he had respected Metalbeak in the short time he had known him, but he believed that he shouldn't dwell in the past.

"I did grieve...but there is a reason I am king...I don't dwell in the past, I move on, for the sake of the Pure Ones!" He finished with a jab at Nix's chest.

"Oh, please, some of the others and I know why you took the mantle a year ago…" Nix retaliated with a glare that could make any owl nervous, except Kludd, of course, "The only reason you probably even consider taking the crown was because you wanted revenge on a measly Guardian." Then he said in a mocking, childish voice "Oh, look at me, I am Kludd, I have family issues and I am jealous of my wittle brother, boo-hoo!" He finished with another spat.

This pushed Kludd over the line, as he instantly charged at him and pinned him to the ground, shocking and frightening the grass owl, as he looked into Kludd's eyes of mighty fury.

Kludd was moments from ending the grass owl's life, but seeing how he was in no mood to get blood on his feather, he merely said in a shaking tone, trying to contain his anger, "You…are lucky that I don't rip you limb from _damn_ limb."

Nix merely gathered his courage as he then gave a smug smirk, "Oh come on, Kludd, let's face reality, you had done nothing noteworthy for the Pure Ones ever since you became king. Heck, the last time we even dealt with a Guardian was when you apparently were defeated by your 'other self'.

Kludd, still trying to refrain from ripping his guts out, remember with disdain of how one day he ran into his brother patrolling the area, and how he came to meet himself and an evil version of his brother from an alternate world, and how both he and other Soren were both beaten by their counterparts. Of course he kept the part about other him and other Soren a secret, as he didn't want the others, including Nyra, whose opinion he valued most, to think him crazy, but somehow, Nix had found out. Why he hadn't told Nyra was beyond him.

Then with a long exhale, he said, keeping a stern tone, "You and 'the others' get back to work, and be thankful that I don't strip you of your rank or something far worse." He got off Nix and look back to the horizon.

Nix looked at him with a vicious glare and thought to himself "_One day, Kludd, it will be you begging for mercy…_" as he flew off to continue with his duties.

Kludd saw him leave, and then sighs as he turn back to the disappearing sun; even though his heart had blackened a lot since that battle, he could still enjoy the beauty of the sun reflecting off the black peaks.

Then he said to himself, "I did not take position as leader just to use the Pure Ones for my own reasons…in fact, I did it because I wanted greatness and respect. Now I have it, and I am happy, happy, happy…" He finished with a cold smirk.

"Oh really?" said a voice.

"Yeah, really, creepy snowy owl I had never seen before who somehow gotten into my chamber." He answered, looking back with confidence, then he realized what he just said. He turned about and saw a snowy owl that was much taller than him, and let out a surprised screech.

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**A/N: Well, that was one real _long _one for a very first chapter I had made. In case of questions, I will answer ones that would probably be asked…**

**- Nix is a grass owl from Mic O'Malley's story 'Skies of Darkness', and I believe was the owl that Kludd fought with in that training scene in the movie. However, unlike Mic, Nix will not get the (BLEEP!) gored out of him, and he will play a bigger role in this story, and as you can see from this chapter, Kludd and him will butt heads at points.**

**- The flashback scene was a scene in bluecatcinema's 'New Beginnings' where Kludd returned to Nyra and co. and eventually became their new leader, of course, I made a few changes to my liking, including an inclusion of Nix.**

**- The reference to Kludd and Soren's other selves are from bluecatcinema's 'Worlds Apart', a story where Soren meets Kludd from an alternate universe. I'll just leave it at that.**

**- The snowy owl is my shoutout to Hedwig from Harry Potter, and the last bit where Kludd flatly answered the owl without realizing his sudden appearance was based off a scene in the Looney Tunes Christmas Special 'Bah, Humduck!' where Daffy asked Sylvester a question without realizing him suddenly being there. Also, if you guys are wonderin' what the deal with him, let's say he'll play a role in Kludd and Soren's relationship and by the way, to people who would view this as a movie, I would have this owl voiced by Randall Duk Kim (The same man who voiced Grand Master Oogway in Kung Fu Panda), and Nix would be voiced by Jensen Ackles (the guy who plays Dean in Supernatural.)**

**And to those disappointed in not seeing Nyra nor KluddxNyra stuff, don't worry, this is just the beginning and there will loads of KluddxNyra along with other pairings. But I did hint at it a little.**

**Well, I said this, Master Crane and all you awesome people who encouraged me and followed/faved me, I hope this chapter was satisfactory, and don't be afraid to criticize. I'm sorry if this chapter was mostly recap, and if I toned down Kludd's evilness a little, but I am going somewhere with this that could cause an uproar amongst villains fans. Well, time for me to say, READ AND REVIEW AND ALSO FOLLOW AND FAVE IF YOU HADN'T ALREADY! SEE YOU SOON! (and I might answer replies…)**

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated.**_


	2. The Evil Lord and The Prophet

**A/N: Okay guys, second chapter (and second one in two days), here, we will learn more about this mysterious owl (funny that no one had questions about him...) and hint at what will happen in the future chapters of this story.**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own the snowy owl that appears in this chapter.**

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Chapter Two: The Evil Lord and the Prophet

Kludd screeched and backed away when he saw the tall white old owl just standing there, with an amused smile on his face.

"Who are you?! How did you get in here?!" He asked, a little freaked out.

The snowy owl merely chuckled and was undeterred by the rudeness of his voice, and he answered, "Oh, where are my manners? I am Samuel. And as for your second question, I just let myself in..."

Kludd then regains his composure and then asked in a peeved tone as he turned away, "Nice to meet you, now get out of here! I'm in no mood to deal with anyone right now!"

Samuel, however just stood there, still smiling, and said in the same unaffected tone, "Oh, I am sure you would be in the mood, had I been a certain white Barn Owl..."

Kludd then froze, and then turn around with shocked face and said, "How did you know about her?" and then he continued, "Just what are you?"

Samuel chuckled and replied, "Why, I am what some owls call a starseer, an owl gifted with the power of starsight."

The barn owl recalled his father telling him and Soren stories about certain owls who had the ability to gaze into the future known as starsight, but just as he thought the Guardians were, he thought starsight was a myth. He thought, "_This owl must be off his rocker. Surely there are no such things as starsight._"

But as he thought those thoughts, Samuel merely chuckled as he spoke "I assure you, I am not crazy. And there is such thing as starsight."

Kludd jumped back a little, and thought, "_He can reads my thoughts?!"_

Samuel answered it as if it was said aloud, "Yes, consider it a side effect to my starsighting ability."

Then Kludd got angry and yelled, "Ok you messed-up freak, what DO you want from me?!"

Samuel, again standing still, replied in a calm tone, "Oh, I do not want anything for you, Kludd...I only came here to talk to you about a certain matter...namely...your path."

Kludd, calming down a little, repeated, "My path?"

Samuel nodded as he explained, "I had been observing you for quite awhile, Kludd." Kludd was about to ask about how he knew his name but he simply replied "I am a starseer; I tend to know everything about everybody." Then he continued, "I also know about your brother, your sister, your parents, your nurse-maid, your friends, your enemies, and more importantly, your love interest."

Kludd grunted a little when his brother and parents, then stiffened up a little when he said love interest. He answered "I have no family except the Pure Ones; I have no friends, only comrades and subjects, and most of all, WHETHER I HAVE A CRUSH ON NYRA IS NOT OF YOUR SPRINKING BUSINESS!" He yelled the last part.

Samuel chuckled "I never said Nyra, now did I?" Kludd immediately shut up realizing he just told the 'crazy' snowy owl his crush, but the snowy owl continued as he said, "You say that you are happy with all you have, what with being Metalbeak, being the ruler of the Pure Ones, having owls worship the grounds you walk, yet I seem to sense a bit of sadness emanating for your being..."

Kludd then snarled, "What are you talking about, I am completely happy with my life, and I'll be even happier once I destroy the Guardians, and rip Soren apart!"

He panted as Samuel looked upon him with pity, "Oh, Kludd, you think that you want to destroy your enemies and kill your brother...but is that really what you want? Or is there something more?"

Kludd, knowing that the snowy owl was hitting home, snarled even more, "Shut up! All my parents always loved him more than me! No matter what I did, Soren always did better, everyone always pay attention to him, never me! While here, everyone knows not to disrespect me! Nyra believed in me, she told me that I had exceptional promise! Even Metalbeak admired my potential! Now here I am, king of the Pure Ones for a year in a few hours! If you say that I'm not happy, then you are screwed up!" He finished with a jab to Samuel's chest, as he took deep shaky breaths.

Samuel gave him a look of sadness, sighed, and said, "I'm sorry if you feel that way…"

"I don't need your pity..." Kludd muttered as he turned away, "Now get out of here and don't let the soldiers kill you on the way out!"

"Okay, if that is what you want..." Samuel said, as he turned away and started walking, "It is a shame that I won't be able to use my starsight to tell you what your future holds..."

"Wait..." Kludd ordered, prompting Samuel to stop in place, while giving a smug smirk, as Kludd then turned around, "What do you say about you telling my future?"

"Why, exactly what I said, Kludd, I can tell you what your future holds..."

"Oh really?" Kludd asked, not believing the snowy owl.

Samuel answered, amusedly, "Ya really, just give me a few moments..." And with that, he started to carve onto the ground in between the two. Before Kludd could ask what he was doing, Samuel started humming, and then he asked "I request a feather from ye, Metalbeak"

Kludd asked, "Uh…why?"

Not waiting for his answer, Samuel plucked a feather from Kludd's chest, prompting a 'ow' and placed a feather on the insignia he carved and then clouds start to puff out of it. Kludd was shocked by what was happening as everything around them started to go dark, and then there was a blue glow emanating from the feather and insignia.

Then Samuel spoke in an eerie voice, "_In the near future, a dark shadow will fall upon these craggy peaks, a shadow much darker than anything these mountains had ever seen before, and the new king and his second-in-command shall have everything they had worked for, taken away from them. Then the usurped king shall seek the help of his enemies, and together, they will vanquish the darkness that fell upon the land, and the king will realize what his heart truly desires_." Samuel finished with a smile; however, Kludd didn't share the same expression, as his face showed shock and then deep anger.

He screeched, "WHAT! You are saying that someone going to kick me off my throne?! That I have to turn to the bloody Guardians for help?! Turn to Soren?! NO WAY IN THE NAME OF GLAUX AND HAGSMIRE AM I GOING TO LET THAT HAPPEN!" Samuel still stood there, and this angered him more. "What?! Are you going to said anything, or just stand there like a crazy old fool?!" Samuel still stood there, expression not changing, and Kludd grew even more angry "Well?! You think that another owl will take my kingdom?! That's the biggest load of…"

"I don't think, I know! It will happen, no matter what you do!" Samuel interrupted with, for the first time since Kludd met him, a stern tone in his voice.

Kludd just scoffed and turn around to face his kingdom, which was blanketed by the full moon, "We'll just see, you crazy owl, my men are trained to their best, by the best. We'll just see if this 'dark shadow' can get past all of my men. What do you said to…?" He turns around to finish his sentence, but he saw no one "That?"

He looked around to see where the owl had gone, but it was as if he was never here, in fact, the insignia the old owl carved was gone. Kludd was a little perturbed by this, and thought to himself, "_I wonder where he went, did I possibly imagine it?_" Then he remembered when he plucked his feather, and then he felt it with his wing, "_No way that could have been my imagination._" However, he looked back to the horizon again, as he did before he met Samuel, and said to himself, "I am Metalbeak, I have been king for nearly a year now, and I will stay king for another ten years, and nothing…I mean nothing, is ever going to change that!"

Meanwhile, a bit away from where Pure Ones resided, a masked owl landed on the branch of a dead tree facing the hideout, with two smaller owls behind him. The big one then said to himself, "There it is…St. Aegolius, it is about time I come home…" He then chuckled darkly to himself as he and his two comrades flew towards the hideout, at the same pace as a brewing storm was making it way over the peaks…

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**A/N: Wooo, suspense! Another chapter done by yours truly, I hope you guys enjoy one of my first OCs, Samuel. In case you guys are wondering what the deal with him, let's say that he isn't really…part of the living. He's like a spirit guide, guiding people down the right path with his word and wisdom, and like I said last chapter, he will play a role in Soren and Kludd's strained relationship. The prophecy scene is based off the Kung Fu Panda 2 scene where Soothsayer told Shen what his future would hold (You guys probably know that part), and the part where Kludd said Oh, Really and Samuel said Ya, Really is based off the owls memes 'O Rly' and 'Ya Rly'. Anyway, you guys are wondering who that one figure in the end was, let's just say he will play a giant role in this story, and his voice? George Newbern (he plays a certain one-winged angel… ;)). Anyway, READ AND REVIEW! And I see you next chapter! (It will have Nyra in it!)**

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated.**_


	3. The King and His Would Be Queen

**A/N: Hey, guys, new chapter! I wanna thank you reviewers for your reviews last chapter, and I am grateful that no one found a problem with it. Well, KluddxNyra fans, and just plain Nyra fans...and Crazybird101, I bring you the next chapter, with (duh-de-duh) NYRA! (Cue applause)**

**P.S. Had you guys checked out my story soundtrack? I made it for people to use as a guide to find music to go with the stories.**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart. I also don't own the scenes that will appear in this chapter.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl.**

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Chapter Three: The King and His Would-Be Queen

As the mysterious owl made his way to the Pure Ones' base, Kludd was still viewing the horizon, in deep thoughts about what Samuel had said. "_A dark shadow will fall upon these craggy peaks… the new king and his second-in-command shall have everything they had worked for, taken away from them… the usurped king shall seek the help of his enemies… and the king will realize what his heart truly desires...certainly he can't be serious about what he said…can he?"_

Kludd's train of thought was interrupted when he heard more flapping; already annoyed by the last two visitors he had, he said in an angry tone, "Oh for Glaux's sake, what is it now…" He turns around with angry eyes, only to see a beautiful white Barn Owl. Embarrassed, he meekly said, "Oh, it's you, Nyra…" as he turns his head in shame.

Nyra gave a look of concern, "I came here to see if anything was troubling you, milord. I heard you screaming…"

Kludd's cheeks blushed a deeper red (fortunately, it can't be seen under his helmet) and said, "Oh, you heard that? I was busy having a discussion with a visitor…"

Nyra looked at him as if he had something on his face "What are you talking about? What visitor? The last one that was in your chamber was Nix, and he's off preparing for the celebration in your honor."

Kludd was a bit surprised; you think anyone would have noticed a snowy owl flying about... Deciding not to concern Nyra with it, he simply said, "Oh, I guess, with all that's going on, I guess I must have imagined someone."

Kludd then mentally wingpalmed himself for saying that. "_Great, now she's going to think you're going crazy!_"

Then Nyra said, "I don't blame you, I suppose after a year of managing a kingdom, the stress would have a toll on you, but hopefully tonight, we'll can take a night's rest and rejoice in the one-year anniversary of your coronation." She finished on a high note, but then her expression took a sad tone as she said, "Metalbeak would have been proud…"

Kludd mentally regretted what he said earlier to Nix about not dwelling in the past, as he knew that Metalbeak wasn't just a leader to them, he was a mate to the sad beautiful creature that stood in front of him, and it had pained her in those lonely nights... He knew he was doing his old master an honor by wearing his crown, but he knew that to Nyra, it was practically rubbing it in her face that Metalbeak was dead and no matter what he did, he could never be what he was…but he could try.

Kludd took one of Nyra's wings into his own, and when Nyra faced him, with tears threatening to fall, he said, "I'll know how you feel...a year ago, we lost a great king, all because of them…and because of my own…issues." He said with a bit of bitterness and regret in his voice. "But, as they say, 'when one king falls, another one rises to take his place'." (**I don't think that's an actual quote, but it has similarity to something, right?**) "And I have every intention of doing him and you proud, and I shall avenge him by killing his murderer, which is fortunately the same owl I _will _kill. Both him and the Guardians, and we both then rule the kingdoms together!" He finished in a triumphant voice.

Nyra, who tears had immediately dried as Kludd said those words, smiled at him. She knew he had potential when she met him, and seeing the things he had done for the kingdom over the year, she was right on the money. Also, when she first saw him, she felt…a little attraction to the Barn Owl, he was smart, cunning, strong, and even with the scars he now had, he was still handsome. He reminded her so much of Metalbeak when they first met, and she didn't care if he was younger than her; she would be honored to be his mate. Only if he returned the feelings…

In which Kludd did. When he first laid his eyes on the queen when she stood before them, giving her speech, he was infatuated with her and was willing to not disappoint her. However though, she was still mate to Metalbeak, and being the respectful owl he was, he kept his feelings to himself as he would never do anything to betray him, but when Metalbeak met his demise at the talons of his brother, he was upset, but secretly in his mind, he was flying for joy as it meant he could be with Nyra. She was also part of the reason he took the throne. As the months passed by, Kludd bided his time, waiting for the right time to proclaim his love for her, however though, being a leader of an army had it's tolls and with dealing with his rivalry with Soren and the Guardians, he was practically busy. But one day...

**Flashback start**

Kludd was perched upon the king's iron perch, as he overlooked his domain, as the army were preparing for the next assault upon the Guardians, hoping to defeat them once and for all, as well as defeating his brother, who was among their ranks...and defeating him was his ultimate goal upon anything else...

As he looked over the kingdom, his thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of the queen, Nyra, as she landed on the perch.

"My king." Nyra addressed, "Work proceeds apace. Soon, we will be ready to strike."

"Excellent." Kludd said, without turning to face the white Barn Owl, "Keep me informed."

Nyra gave a nod and was about to leave...but then she asked, "Forgive me for asking, my king, but is something the matter?" as her face was marked with concern, "You seem somewhat...out of sorts."

Kludd sighed, as he then explained, "It's my brother. I can't seem to think of anything beyond killing him. It obsesses me." Usually this wasn't always the case, sure Soren's death was part of the plan, but it seems that on certain days, it's all that he can think about.

"I don't blame you, my king." Nyra agreed, as she too had some vengeance that she would love to unleash upon the Barn Owl, "Your brother turned his back on the true destiny of all Tytos. He chose the path of the Guardians, mollycoddling the weak, and denying us our true heritage. All the same, thoughts of his oh-so-justified death must be withheld, for the time being." She pointed out, as there was no time for such nightdreaming.

"I am well aware of that..." Kludd muttered bitterly, "Rest assured, I have not forgotten our true goal."

"Of course not." Nyra smirked, she doubt that Kludd would forget the Pure Ones' agenda, "I knew from the moment I first saw you had the potential to become a powerful and determined warrior, and a capable leader."

Kludd smiled at the compliment, "That I am. I will not let my...family squabbles get in the way of leading our cause to glory." It wouldn't be a problem keeping that promise, since Soren and the Guardians were practically the same to him.

However, this prompted Nyra to give him a concerned look as she asked, "If I may be so bold, my king, what proof do I have of this? Your last plan focused exclusively on your brother's demise. Am I simply to take you word that you will not formulate similar plans in the future?" She pointed out, remembering how disastrous their last encounter with the Guardians had gone.

Kludd, hearing this, turned to Nyra and gave her a serious look in the eyes, "You once told me never to lie to you." He said, reminding her of the promise he made to her before he became king. "Though I am now your king, as opposed to your soldier, I have every intention of upholding that order."

Nyra was touched by such words, she knew he was loyal to their cause, but never did she thought that he would remember a promise made a while back, "Thank you, my king." She said with a bow, "I trust I have not offended you with my baseless accusations." She added with a bit of concern.

"Of course not." Kludd smirked, as he could never be angry at her, "A good second-in-command is allowed to test her leader…every so often. Together, we will lead the Pure Ones to victory. We will conquer the owl kingdoms. And when our conquest is complete, you will rule beside me, as queen." He declared, as he gave a promising grin to the beautiful white Barn Owl.

"Yes, my king." Nyra bowed once more. "It would be my greatest honor…" and with a loving smile, she added, "…and pleasure."

With that, the two leaders looked upon the kingdom together, as they prepared for their next bout with the legendary Guardians.

**Flashback ends**

But they never did attack the Guardians, as there were many problems, mostly having to do with setbacks and some bats (after how _well_ their last plan went, they relieved them of duty), but Kludd still held onto that promise…

Although, he kinda regretted making that promise now, as he could hardly keep his feelings for her under wraps when he is around her. Nyra looked at him with a smile and said, "Thank you, Kludd, I knew I made the right decision when I made you king." Then the queen started looking at him seductively, making the new Metalbeak slightly uncomfortable.

She said, "I know we hadn't defeated the Guardians yet, and we aren't mates yet, but I believe you deserve a little 'reward' for doing a good job so far…" Then she started to lean in for a kiss.

In Kludd's head, things were going crazy, "_Oh Glaux, Oh Glaux, she's going to kiss me!_" one part of his conscience said, and then another part of his conscience questioned, "_Well, what are you waiting for? Meet her halfway!_" Taking that conscience's advice, the barn owl smirked and starts leaning in as well.

Both Kludd and Nyra's beaks were moments from touching, when they both heard "Uh, excuse me?" The moment ruined, they both turned angrily at the servant (**yes, the same one from the first chapter**), and yelled "WHAT?!"

"Didn't you see I was busy?!" Kludd screeched.

The servant flinched under the two leaders' glares and nervously said "Uh, there's an outsider owl here that would like an audience with you and Queen Nyra in the main chamber."

Kludd, deeply annoyed by this inconvenience, just assumed it was an owl seeking their protection, but as the late Metalbeak would say, 'The broken should be put out of their misery.' The evil king ordered, "Well, tell him to go away, or suffer the wrath of the Pure Ones."

He hoped that statement would send him packing, but the servant still remain and said something that would shock both him and Nyra. "That's just the thing, sir...this owl just kill ten of our men!"

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**A/N: Well, looks like our mysterious owl from the last chapter have arrived! And man, is he lethal! I hope I pleased you with this KluddxNyra chapter, and sorry if I had the kiss interrupted, but trust me, that kiss will happen in due time! As for that servant, I would have him voiced by Lee Norris (the same guy who played Mouth in One Tree Hill and Minkus in Boy Meets World), I can imagine that voice being nervous around a pissed-off Metalbeak. As for that one promise Kludd made about making Nyra his queen, it is a scene from Dark Feelings, one of the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema. And the first plan was a reference to New Beginnings, the first of bluecatcinema's series. I bet you guys are wondering, why is this story called Between Brothers if I only shown Kludd. Again, don't worry, Soren and his friends will be making their appearance soon. As for Nyra, sorry if I made her a little OOC with tears, but I believe Nyra would have mourn the loss of her husband, especially a year since his death and I believe Kludd, despites his cold heart, would comfort her. Well, READ AND REVIEW and you guys will see my favorite OC in the next chapter.**

**Artworks stuff is appreciated.**


	4. Bringing Down The Giant, Part I

**A/N: Well, it's time for the first part of our plot! Here, a part of Samuel's prophecy will be fulfilled, and we shall meet the main antagonist of this story, and trust me, if you guys think Kludd and Nyra are malicious, this owl would be a hellspawn. Oh, and as for the chapter title, it's after a favorite (yet fitting) song of mine.**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**I do not own Bringing Down The Giant nor Saving Abel (but that song kicks ass)**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, and I own the owls that will be mentioned in this chapter.**

**P.S.: As you read this chapter, it is strongly recommended that you listen to 'Catalyst' by Linkin Park or 'Bringing Down the Giant' by Saving Abel**

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Chapter Four: Bringing Down The Giant, Part I

_"Take your bow, you had your shot, looking down while you're on top, now your glory days are gone, gone, gone!"_

- a verse from Bringing Down the Giant, Saving Abel

Kludd and Nyra, upon hearing those words from the servant, they quickly flew to the chamber, and sure enough, they saw all of their men crowding around a group of three birds, all of them were helmed, with two of them being barn owls, like Kludd and Nyra but much smaller than the middle one, which stood out to Kludd. The middle one was taller than most owls he had seen and looked like he has been fighting for a long time. The most outstanding features however, were that his left wing was all black in contrast to the light brown color of all his other parts, and on the back of his talons, two silver blade-like heels were attached to it, and his helm looked like that of a mythical creature or something.

However though, he saw the bodies at his feet and sure enough, there were ten and they all have slash marks around their necks and bodies. A bit mortified, he looked at the middle one, which he presumed was the leader, who had cold silver eyes (and probably a cold expression if he wasn't wearing that mask), with a glare and demanded "Who are you?! What brings you here?! And why did you kill my soldiers?!"

The masked figure merely chuckled and said in a cold, raspy voice that would send chills down an owl's spine. "So you are the new Metalbeak that I had been hearing about... I gotta said, I'm not impressed."

This angered Kludd as he asked in a more fearsome tone "Answer my questions! Who are you? What brings you here? And why did you slaughter my soldiers?!"

The stranger just laughed again, "My, my, my, have you got a temper..."

"Answer the king!" Nyra demanded with a vicious glare.

"Now, now, there is no need to be rash...I am Lord Skarmoris..." He introduced smugly, "And these two owls behind me are my most loyal servants...Biggs…" he pointed to the barn owl with a bulky build, "...and Wedge." He pointed to the less bulky but more slim Barn Owl at his right.

"Okay, nice to meet you." Kludd brushed off before snarling, "NOW WHY HAD YOU KILLED MY MEN?!

The Sulawesi Masked Owl let out a dark chuckle, "Oh, these owls here?" He gestured to the owls at his feet, "Well, let just say that they were less than hospitable to us travelers. Those poor fools found it funny to gang up on three owls who happened upon this place...so I personally taught each and one of them a lesson in etiquettes…"

Kludd looked at the bodies again and then snarled, "They were ordered to kill anyone who trespasses, what did you expect?"

Skarmoris answered, "Well a challenge at least, all it took was one slash to end each and one of them, yet this was supposedly Metalbeak's old army…I would have expected the old coot's heir to train them right..."

This made Kludd even madder as then Nyra step up and said in a venomous tone, "Excuse me?! Where do you get off telling our leader how to train his soldiers?!" However, when she made this outburst, both Biggs and Wedge menacingly took a step forward, both giving her vicious glares, nearly frightening her, but the queen wouldn't back down.

"Now, now, boys, there's no need to get defensive..." The mysterious owl slighly scolded, prompting the two owls to stand down, as he continued, "Well, I should have you know, I was once a Pure One…" This caused mutters around the Pure Ones and Kludd and Nyra shared a surprised look, "but your previous leader had seen me as a potential threat to his crown...so he exiled me."

Nyra took this as a sheer insult, "Don't you dare lie! Metalbeak probably had his reasons for exiling a pompous knave such as yourself!"

Then Skarmoris step up to her and stare in her eyes, and gave another chuckle, "Well my queen, you were always naïve, Metalbeak was a scarred-faced freak that was past his time, and he knew he could never defeat me, that is the only reason that he had exiled me…" He then stepped back and return his gaze to Kludd, "But I got over it, because I knew that Metalbeak would get himself killed eventually, but when I heard a few months later that he got himself killed by a measly owlet and was replaced with that owlet's brother. I knew things had just gotten interesting. So I've been hiding out around the territory all year in secret, hearing everything I can about you…and it turns out that you are a much worse leader than Metalbeak was."

Kludd had just about enough of his insults and screamed at him, "So what?! You come here, killed my soldiers, insult Lord Metalbeak, and insult me?! Is that all?!"

Skarmoris gave an evil laugh and said "Not the least bit. I have come to put the control of the Pure Ones back in more competent talons. _My _talons."

It was Kludd's turn to laugh, "I see…" then his laugh turned into a complete snarl, "I had it just up to here…" he puts his right wing up to his neck, "…with your _damn_ bantering! Soldiers! Kill them!"

As soon as he said kill, some of the soldiers charged at the three strangers and Skarmoris gave a nod to his soldiers and then spread his wings, blowing feathers around, as his two blade-like heels flipped over his two talons, into two silver swords, (**like the ones used in the movie, except they're silver**) and the two soldiers took battle stances. Two Pure Ones charged at Skarmoris himself, but his blades instantly cut them down. Then ten more came and try charging at him, but Biggs and Wedge step in front and practically incapacitate each and one of them by either tossing them into walls or merely breaking their necks.

Kludd stood mortified as he watched his soldiers get beaten and killed by just three mere owls. Deeply angered, he (with the battle claws he usually have equipped), charged right at Skarmoris, attempting to inflict damage upon him, but his claws were met with his swords, and Kludd, horrified for the first time in a long while, looked into Skarmoris's cold eyes, as he then headbutted him to the ground. As Kludd attempted to get up, Skarmoris cross his two swords and held them down to his throat. Nyra, who was busy ordering the soldiers to charge at them, saw her king in trouble and attempted to help, but Biggs and Wedge suddenly pinned her to the ground as well.

"NYRA!" Kludd screamed, and then he looked to his soldiers, which consisted of Nix, Jatt, and Jutt. "JATT! JUTT! NIX! Help me!" he begged.

But Skarmoris then sarcastically agreed, "Yes, help your pathetic leader get free from an owl that could very well kill you all."

Jatt and Jutt looked horrified, but Nix, who had only dreamed of seeing his 'beloved' leader begging for mercy, saw with awe, as then Nyra screamed at Nix while still being pinned, "Well?! Your King needs you! Why aren't you attacking?!"

Nix then said in a bitter low pitch, "Shut up…you nagging WRETCH!" this sentence shocked Nyra and Kludd, horrified Jatt and Jutt, and merely impressed Skarmoris.

Nyra, appalled by his defiance, said in a low venomous voice, "How dare you…."

Then Nix ignored her, and then approached Skarmoris, and said, "I have been stuck under that fool's rule…" he point to Kludd, "For a whole _damn _year, and he hadn't been able to win one bloody battle against the Guardians. Yet you…your presence speaks of glory...everything that even our late king Metalbeak failed to achieve in his time." Then, he started to bow, "We would be honored if you lead us, oh Lord Skarmoris."

"WHAT!" Kludd and Nyra both screamed.

Kludd then looked over to his men (including Jatt and Jutt), who looked at their king and queen, then at the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and without wasting another moment, they followed Nix's lead as they bow to Skarmoris who in turn, chuckled and said, "Well, what a sudden turns of events...look likes your soldiers aren't as loyal as you once thought, are they, Kludd?"

Kludd was in major disbelief in what was going on. Tonight was supposed to be the night honoring his first year as King of the Pure Ones, yet here he was, pinned by an owl he never saw before, stealing the loyalty of his subjects, and his love interest was in equal disbelief of what was happening, then Kludd remembered Samuel's prophecy, "_a dark shadow will fall upon these craggy peaks… the new king and his second-in-command shall have everything they had worked for, taken away from them…_" He just couldn't believe that part actually came true!

The Barn Owl then asked in a shaky tone, "Why…why are you doing this?"

Skarmoris merely looked at him and said, "Why, because, if my time is right, tonight is your one-year anniversary, am I right?"

Kludd merely nodded, as the swords neared his throat a little bit more. "Well, I believe you did enough damage to a once-proud race. Tonight not only marks the one-year anniversary of your reign, it marks the end of it and the beginning of another's reign. I'm sorry, but this is where we say good-bye…"

Skarmoris raised his left talon's sword as prepare to kill him on the spot, and Nyra watched in horror as she was about to witness the death of another loved one. Kludd then closed his eyes, in regret that he'll never have the chance to fulfill his goals, he thought of Metalbeak, Nyra, and unexpectedly, Soren… "_Well, brother, I guess I won't have the chance to defeat you once and for all._"

But all of the sudden, he heard a voice in his head, a familiar voice "_I wouldn't be so sure…_"

Kludd opens his eyes suddenly just as he heard that voice and said, "Samuel?"

Then, an extremely loud screech echoed across the chamber, rendering all the soldiers, Biggs and Wedge included, unable to move, and Skarmoris himself was paralyzed, and let out a screech of pain. Using this opportunity, Kludd kicked him off, and then, with a screech, he rammed Biggs and Wedge off Nyra. She tried to ask what was going on, but all Kludd said, over the screech, was, "NO TIME! RUN!" as both of them took to the air and try to put as much ground between them and any potential pursuers.

The screech eventually ceased, and Nix prepared to chase after them but then Skarmoris, recovering from Kludd's kick, put his black wing on his shoulder and said "No, let them go, knowing that boy, he will eventually come to 'take his kingdom' back. For now, we should move our base of operations to a most fitting location for the Pure Ones."

Nix asked, "And where would that be?"

Skarmoris chuckled, "All in due time, in the meantime, since our 'nagging wretch' had flew the coop, I will like to dub you my new second-in-command."

Nix was shocked by the owl's generosity and replied "I will not fail you, my liege…" as he bowed.

Jatt, confused with all that was going on, said unsure, "Uh…all hail Skarmoris?" as the remaining soldiers start to chant his name.

Skarmoris then turn to face the skylight within the chamber, and pondered "_I wonder where that dreadful noise came from…no matter, once I have trained these fools, the kingdoms will forever fear the name, **Skarmoris**…_"

Meanwhile, on the outskirts of the craggy peaks, the two once leaders of the Pure Ones were flapping their wings as fast as they could until they landed in a spot where they would not be spotted. Nyra looked back with tears in her eye and said "I just don't believe it, everyone…Jatt, Jutt, Nix…everyone chose _him_ over us…everything me and Metalbeak put into this kingdom, all gone…" then she started to sob.

Kludd, who was distraught as well, was hurt that he could not prevent it, and then he remembered what Samuel had said before "_It will happen, no matter what you do_", then he recalled hearing his voice before that loud screech.

Kludd thought, "_I can't believe that damn owl was right, but the question is what we do now?_" Then he recalled the next part of the snowy owl's prophecy "_Then the usurped king shall seek the help of his enemies, and together, they will vanquish the darkness that fell upon the land…_" Kludd's blood run cold, as he realized what that prophecy meant…they were going to have to enlist the help of their enemies, The Guardians, if they were going to have any chance of getting their kingdom back.

Kludd then approached Nyra and said, "I know this is hard, but we can't give up, Metalbeak would want us to find a way to take back our kingdom…"

Nyra turned around with a red face and screeched "THEN WHAT?! WE HAVE NO ONE WE CAN TURN TO!"

Kludd, preparing to behold her reaction to what he about to said, simply replied "Well, not exactly no one, there is someone…"

Nyra stopped sobbing, and suddenly looked at him as if he had gone off the deep end. "Kludd…Metalbeak, you can't…you can't be serious!"

Kludd grab hold of her with his wings and looked into her eyes, "Look, I know it's yoicks, but if we are going to get those treacherous owls back, we going to need their help, we need…the Guardians..."

Nyra just looked at her with a face that would said "seriously?" then suddenly slapped him and screeched "ARE YOU INSANE?! WHAT COULD POSSIBLY POSSESS YOU TO THINK THAT THE GUARDIANS WOULD HELP US?!"

Kludd, a little hurt from the slap then said "In case you hadn't noticed, Skarmoris is now the leader of the Pure Ones, thus making him the enemy of the Guardians; we can assume that, if we share the same enemy, they will help us, and don't forget, I have a brother along the ranks of the Guardians!"

The ex-queen then calm down but kept a sour face as she remembered Kludd's brother, and spoke with a low tone "That may be so…how do you suggest that we find Ga'Hoole?"

Kludd, once confident with the idea, suddenly drooped as he remembered that no Pure Ones had ever found Ga'Hoole and lived to tell the tale. Then, suddenly, it started raining, drenching the two owls, "Oh great Glaux, first I lose my kingdom and now it is raining?!" Then he turn his head to the sky and screamed "What did I do to deserve this?!" but when he did look to the sky, he saw a familiar snowy owl flying over him. "Samuel? Hey! Samuel!" He started shouting out to him, leaving Nyra confused.

"Who's Samuel?" she asked, but Kludd ignored her and try calling his name again, but when the snowy owl didn't reply, he took off after him, and Nyra, still wondering who the young ex-King was referring to, followed him as they both make chase after the owl through the storm…

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**A/N: Wow, a lot of things happened in this chapter...first off, we meet the main antagonist of this story, Skarmoris (Scar-more-is), a Sulawesi Masked Owl (indigenous to Indonesia and is a Tyto) who claimed to have been one of old Metalbeak's soldier before he was exiled because Metalbeak felt threatened by him. I had a lot of inspiration when it came to making him. I wanted a villain that could be as the lyrics in The Catalyst-Linkin Park would say "Can't be outfought, can't be outmatched, can't be outdone, and can't be outrun". My main inspiration for this character was no other than Final Fantasy VII's own Sephiroth, as I wanted a villain that is sadistic and skilled, while having a cool and collected personality. That is also why I made his left wing black (as in the game and Kingdom Hearts, he had a black wing protruding from his left shoulder), and why I gave him two silver swords (that will be explained later on). His helmet is shaped like Giratina's head in it's origin forme, to give him a menacing appearance, and his name is a play on the Pokemon Skarmory, which in one crossover with LoTG:OoG and Pokémon, Skarmory was used to portray the old Metalbeak, so it works perfectly, and he is played by George Newbern, who plays Sephiroth's voice in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, giving him a cold-sounding voice. As for Skarmoris's two henchman Biggs and Wedge, they will be of minor importance for the story, hell, they won't even have dialogue, but their names originates from many installments in Final Fantasy, including VII and VIII. And yes, Kludd and Nyra will not be the antagonists in this story; they will 'for the first time in fanfiction history' be protagonists along with our main heroes. Speaking of heroes, those who are fans of Soren, you will be in luck as I will be introducing him next chapter. Okay, that's all I have to say, and you readers better appreciate this chapter, since I put five hours into writing this. You guys probably know what's coming next: READ AND REVIEW! P.S. No, the next chapter will not be called Bringing Down The Giant, Part II till way later in the story.**

**(P.S. Crazybird, please if you use Skarmoris in your chat, be sure to deeply respect him since he is deadly and can probably kill you...)**

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated. (I would deeply appreciate it if someone made a picture of Skarmoris, but that's just me)**_


	5. The Hero and The Starseer

**A/N: HIYA EVERYBODY! (Everyone Else: HIYA SHEN'S GENERAL!) Just funny Simpsons humor to lighten up the mood since I left the last chapter on a negative note, and to make up for it, I decided to update it a day earlier than expected! Last time, we left Kludd and Nyra following the mysterious snowy owl Samuel, after they were forced to flee their home when a heavily-skilled owl named Skarmoris came in and won the loyalty of their subjects, prompting the soldiers (Nix included) to shift loyalty to their new leader. Now, within this chapter, we will finally see Kludd's brother Soren and see our favorite snowy owl Samuel. This chapter was originally going to be where Soren and Kludd met again, but then I thought that would be extremely long, so I moved that part to the next chapter, and I seek help from the movie itself to help me deliver this chapter better, also, I made a few tweaks to my last few chapters so it is easily read better. I hope you readers enjoy!**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel. I also don't own the scene that will appear in this chapter.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart. I also don't own the scenes that will appear in this chapter.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls.**

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Chapter Five: The Hero and the Starseer

~About five to six hours earlier~

While all the events back at St. Aegolius were happening, things were rather peaceful back at the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole, home to the legendary Guardians. In contrast to the craggy peaks of St. Aegolius, Ga'Hoole was considered beautiful year-round. Soren, a Barn Owl that hailed from the Forest Kingdom of Tyto, have always dreamt of living in such a place, serving alongside the Guardians, like his hero, The Lyze of Keil. It was such dreams that gave Soren the ability to branch real well, to Kludd's dismay, and it was such dreams that gave him the courage and strength to escape St. Aegolius, when their now-deceased friend Grimble told him and his friend Gylfie, an Elf Owl, that the Guardians were as real as him and her. After escaping the clutches of the Pure Ones, the two owlets met a Burrowing Owl named Digger, a rather-funny owl who loves telling jokes, who later introduced them to his friend, A lute-playing Great Gray Owl known as Twilight, who, while hunting, found Soren's nursemaid, a snake known as Mrs. Plithiver or Mrs. P for short, who had cared for him and Kludd when they were owlets.

Together, the five made their way to a shrine that acted as a gateway to Ga'Hoole, where they met an eccentric echidna who gave odd, yet accurate knowledge as to how to get to the Guardians' home. They continued onwards, even into the middle of a fierce storm, where they met the queen of Ga'Hoole known as Barran, and were led into the legendary Great Tree of Ga'Hoole. When they told the Parliament of the Tree, (leaded by Barran and her husband Boron) one of the council, Allomere, who was secretly associated with the Pure Ones, didn't believe them, but fortunately, the Whiskered Screech Owl Ezylryb, supported it. After sending Allomere out to scout, the band of heroes were later taught in different chaws (which were classes in certain techniques such as stargazing and blacksmith). During that time, Soren and Gylfie met Otulissa, a Short-eared Owl that grew infatuated with Soren, much to Gylfie's annoyance.

Eventually, Ezylryb brought Soren and co. (with Otulissa as well) out to the sea during a vicious rainstorm, where he taught them gizzard-flying, the act of flying in controlled fashion. Soren and Gylfie have trouble controlling it, but Soren manages to master it momentarily before losing focus and would have fell into the sea had not Ezylryb saved him. Later at his den, Ezylryb was revealed to be the Lyze of Kiel (**You know, ezyl is lyze spelled backwards with ryb, a type of owl I think, added at the end**), Soren's hero, but the old owl scoffs at it, saying it wasn't as heroic as most owls would make it out to be, and it was merely doing what is right.

Things heated up when Allomere came back with two moon-blinked owlets, one of them being Soren's young sister Eglantine, claiming that the Pure Ones ambushed his two men. Angered by the loss of their two warriors, the Guardians (with Ezylryb, as well) went to battle with them, not knowing that Allomere was sending them into a trap. Fortunately, Soren was able to snap Eglantine out of it and she told them that Kludd took her and gave her to the traitorous owl.

The band immediately rushed to the Guardians' aid where they were trapped under the magnetic influence of the flecks while the bats went to finish them off. Thanks to the art taught by Ezylryb, Soren was able to grab a lamp and set it aflame and managed to destroy the mechanism with the flecks, thus freeing the Guardians and leveling the playing field against the Pure Ones. However, Kludd, Soren's brother, and rising member of the Pure Ones, confronted him and battled him amongst a burning forest, where it took to a tree, where Soren and Kludd exchanged some emotional words, and before you could say Hoot, Kludd is hanging onto Soren, who in turn, was holding onto a branch over fire.

Soren attempts to save him but Kludd planned on sending him down into the fire, but the plan failed and the brother end up falling into the flames. Believing that his brother had perished, Soren, hungering for vengeance upon Metalbeak, grabbed a branch and went to find him, where he found his hero at the mercy of him and Nyra. A fight ensued between Soren and Metalbeak, but it ended when Soren managed to impale him with a burning branch from earlier, thus prompting Nyra and the army to retreat and the Guardians leaving on the winds of victories. Once they returned, the band were all honored as Guardians, and Soren reunited with his family of Noctus, Marella, and Eglantine, and it seemed like a happy ending…

Oh what little did Soren know, as a few weeks later, during the Milkberry Harvest Festival, while Soren was trying to tell Otulissa his feelings for her, a pygmy owl Primrose, a member of the Search and Rescue chaw, crashes in, saying that her comrades were ambushed by the Pure Ones, and that they request Soren and his friends. The Barn Owl and co. were willing to comply as they made their way back to St. Aegolius, where Soren met Kludd again, except he was now leader of the Pure Ones, and practically to Soren, a completely different owl who lusted for power and such. He requested a one on one fight with him for the sake of the Primrose's crew.

The fight was gruesome as Soren tried to get him to stop, but only to anger him to the point where he had Soren in the corner. It would had ended badly for Soren if Otulissa and the other Guardians, not trusting the Pure Ones, intervened. The battle was won, Otulissa was made into a Guardian, and Soren finally confessed his feelings to her. That would seem like a good ending, right?

Wrong, as he had to deal with issues concerning his best friend and his girlfriend, which was eventually resolved (at his expense), and the other incident that would mark Soren's last time seeing Kludd. It happened when Soren was patrolling along the territory lines of the Pure Ones, contemplating what could have been with Kludd, when he ran into him. A scuffle occurred and ended quickly when the new Metalbeak got flung into some creepers and Soren left to avoid possible infractions with other Pure Ones when he came across a bit of light emanating from the crack in a mountain. Suddenly, a figure came out from that life, showing to be a Guardian, like himself, except it was Kludd (minus Metalbeak's helmet and his burns from the fire).

Apparently, he was from alternate world much similar to that of Soren's, except in his world, him and Kludd had shifted roles, with Soren being Metalbeak, and Kludd becoming a guardian. (**I know, complicated, isn't it?**), but things got more crazy when the original Kludd came and encountered the two and when the Soren from other Kludd's world followed him. After an awkward conversation, both Kludd and other Soren teamed up against their counterparts and yet another fight ensued. It wasn't till other Kludd flung his brother (the other Soren) back into the crack, which was slowly fading, that Kludd (**the one we know**) retreated. Then the other Kludd returned through the crack that closed itself afterwards, leaving Soren brotherless once more…

In a certain hollow within Ga'Hoole, Soren was busy dreaming, and it seems like a pretty good dream…

'_Soren, while donning his Guardian helmet, was busy soaring through the skies, not having a care in a world and feeling the winds coursing through his feathers, then, all of a sudden, he felt something flew past him. That something was another Guardian, a barn owl such as himself. Feeling up for a challenge, Soren started to fly faster as he started to catch up with his fellow guardian and was soon head to head with the figure, as he saw what they were racing towards: a tall tree that stood out amongst the other tree. With the target in mind, both owls darted towards the tree with groundbreaking speed until the other Guardian pulled out ahead and made it to the tree first, but barely…A little disappointed, but nonetheless satisfied, Soren landed on the tree and addressed the figure, "Well, looked like you won." And then the figure said 'I did say I would defeat you one day, brother." Then the figure turns to him and reveals to be Kludd, with his scars, but with a heart-warming smile.'_

Soren woke up with a jolt and look around real quick before realizing that he was dreaming…again. For the few months, since his last encounter with his brother, he had been having weird dreams that seemed to revolve around one thing…Kludd. At first, he just thought it was just a dream regarding what had happen that day, but then he started having it continuously, each and one of them having Kludd, _his_ Kludd, as a fellow Guardian, laughing and cheerful as he was when they were both chicks. Soren then let out a sad sigh as he remembered what tonight was. Tonight was the one-year anniversary of Metalbeak's death and everyone would be rejoicing at the celebration, but not him… it wasn't that he wasn't happy Metalbeak was dead; the Sooty Owl needed to be stopped at all costs; but to Soren, that day he killed Metalbeak was the same day he probably lost Kludd forever to the Pure Ones. His heart started wrenching at the thought as he remembered that day…

**Flashback starts** (**Best enjoyed with song 'Through the Ghost' by Shinedown**)

Soren had just finished destroying the flecks and freeing the guardians, and was watching over the owlets with Gylfie and Digger when in the war-torn sky, he saw a certain Barn Owl flying amidst.

"Kludd?" He said to himself, and all of the sudden, he flew off into the battlefield despite Gylfie's plea and went to find his brother. He flew as hard as he can as he weave and dodge the Pure Ones' attacks and he called out, "Kludd!" However, Kludd charged at him, grabbing his talons and flung Soren into the burning forest.

The Barn Owl, a bit dazed, quickly looked around real quick to see where his brother went when he heard, "Hello…brother" and then Kludd hit him again into another tree, leaving Soren even more befuddled, but there was no rest for the wicked when he heard his brother's voice once more.

"Your precious Guardians are finished, Soren…" Kludd hit him once again and he continued, "The Pure Ones will triumph and Tytos will take their rightful place as rulers of the owl kingdoms." And as he charged for another shot he said with a cold grin, "Oh, it's going to be glorious!"

Soren, however, saw Kludd this time and dodged while hitting him in the midsection as he passed; sending him crashing into a stump, and Soren confronted him, "Glorious? The Pure Ones are monsters! You saw what they were doing! They were moon-blinking other owls and turning them into slaves!" He said turning around.

Kludd merely said, "They're just weak, Soren…Still living in your dreams." He then flapped over Soren and they started to circle each other.

Soren, quick to defend, rebutted, "Oh, my dream is what makes me strong, Kludd…They led me to the Guardians!"

Kludd then chuckled coldly, and said, "Pity there won't be any Guardians left after today." He then lunged at Soren, who dodged it and landed atop a broken tree stump.

Soren was in disbelief; he asked "I don't understand…how can you join the Pure Ones after what they done to us?"

Kludd, slightly insulted, repeated, "What they did to us?" and he felt his inner emotions burning, and continued "They believe in me like no one else ever had. Metalbeak said that the strong will triumph. The broken are put are out of their misery…" and then he panted as he spat the last thing with venom, "And honor…honor is another word for weakness."

Soren was shocked by what he said, how could his own brother think such horrible things? Trying to process what he said, he said, "No, Kludd, I know you don't really think that…"

Then Kludd said with a vicious glare, "Then you don't know me…at all" then he charged at him, sending both of them rolling down a broken part of a tree.

Soren reacted and grabbed ahold of one of the branches and grab Kludd as he flipped over him and landed on his back with a sickening crush and let out a pained groan. Knowing the situation he was in, he begged his brother "Soren, my wing's broken, help me up." Soren then tried to do so, but was having trouble and then Kludd said, "Soren, I'm your brother…"

Upon hearing that, Soren summoned all the strength he had in his body to pull him up, but little did he know that Kludd was eyeing the branch next to them and when Kludd got close enough to it, he grabbed the branch, yanked Soren down, and attempt to strike him with his free claw…but he missed…he missed and the branch he was holding onto broke and he screamed as he fell into the flame, and all Soren could do was scream, "KLUDD! NO!" as he watched his brother disappears into the flames.

Soren was at complete lost for words, as he felt grief struck him like a ton of bricks, but then he heard grunts and clash of steel as he eyed where Metalbeak's throne was, and all that grief was replaced with anger, and muttered, "Metalbeak…" as he eyed the burning branch his talon was clutching and broke it off and flew off to find him…

**Flashback ends**

Soren felt, even though he succeeded in killing Metalbeak, he failed to save his brother, because if he had not killed him, Kludd would probably never taken his place and there would have probably been a chance. Not even the mention of ma and da could have snapped him out of it back when they met again…

**Flashback starts **(**again…**)

When Primrose came crashing in during the Milkberry Harvest Festival, saying the Pure Ones had ambushed and took her fellow members and were asking for Soren and his friends, they were more than compliant as they head off to St. Aegolius to rescue them, but little did Soren know, he would be seeing his brother again.

When they landed, one owl, donning the helm of Metalbeak, greeted Soren with a familiar "Hello…brother."

Soren was surprised (and deep inside, rejoicing that his brother was alive) as he heard those words, "Kludd? You're alive?" he asked.

The helmed owl then answered with a bitter expression, "Don't act surprised."

Soren ignored that remark when he asked, "Why are you wearing that thing?" pointing out Metalbeak's helmet.

Kludd answered, boasting, "I am the new Metalbeak, Soren. The new leader of the Pure Ones."

Then Soren's blood ran cold when he heard "new leader of the Pure Ones", his brother had become the new number one enemy of the Guardians, and he started denying, "No…No…"

Kludd merely chuckled and said, "Yes, I always knew I was destined for greatness, for glory, and now, I finally have it."

Then after threatening to kill the hostages if Soren refused, they both took to battle, but Soren wasn't ready to give up on his brother as tried asking him, "Why are you doing this? Is a little recognition really worth all this pain and suffering?"

Kludd, not willing to listen, yelled, "Save your nonsense for someone who cares. I've left such weak-minded thoughts behind me."

Soren tried again, "Kludd…" just to be interrupted...

"And stop calling me that! I am Metalbeak now!" he screamed as he sheared a few feathers off his brother's chest.

Soren ignored him and asked, "I'm your brother. Doesn't that count for anything?"

Kludd just spat, "Nothing at all."

As he lunged at him, Soren then deflected his attack, sending him to the ground, while asking, "What about ma and da?" and as Kludd was trying to get up, Soren continued, "I haven't told them, you know. About what you have done. Because it would break their hearts. They'd be ashamed of you, Kludd."

Unbeknownst to him, this had affected Kludd a little, but he just shook it off with pure rage and screamed, "SHUT UP!" as he got to his feet and rammed Soren in his abdomen and threw him towards a rotten tree stump…

**Flashback ends**

Soren also remembered that if his crush, Otulissa, hadn't rammed him when she did, Kludd would have killed him, and for that, he was eternally grateful to her. However, the fact that Kludd was willing to kill him hurt him badly, and he knew that if he told their parents, it would break their hearts and probably sever any ties Kludd and they had left.

That is why he lied to them by saying Kludd had perished during the fight trying to save him, to leave at least a good image of their eldest son. It was also why when he and others debrief (after Otulissa's initiation into Guardianship), Soren and his friends merely said that a new owl had took Metalbeak's place, knowing that if the Guardians knew that the new leader was his brother, they would prevent him from trying to talk sense into him and they would kill him either way, not to mention it would mortify Otulissa and his hero Ezylryb. Soren and his friends Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight were the only ones, who knew who Metalbeak truly was, and he hoped it would stay that way. Then his heart ached again when he remembered meeting the alternate version of his brother…

**Flashback starts** (**Last one, I swear XD)**

After defeating his brother and his evil self with the help of his other brother, they were back at the cliff near the shining crack, which was slowly healing itself, as he and other Kludd shared a few last words…

"I supposed I really must be going now. Thanks for everything" other Kludd said, with a smile.

"It's me who should be thanking you." Soren said.

This mystified the barn owl as he asked "Why?"

Soren answered, "Because thanks to you, I now know that somewhere out there, there's a Kludd who believes in honor and compassion." Placing his wing on his brother's alternate self's shoulder, he finished "Just you being here gives me hope that someday my Kludd will come to believe in those same things too."

The Barn Owl simply smiled and said "I see, I supposed I could say the same about my Soren."

"I'm glad we met." Soren said with a smile.

Other Kludd reciprocated his feelings "Me too…Goodbye brother."

As he flew through the crack just as it closed, leaving Soren alone, with his eyes wetting repeating his other brother's words "Goodbye…brother."

**Flashback ends**

Just as he finished remembering that moment, his eyes were tearing up when he realized it been over ten months since that day, and his brother was still leader of their enemies. Soren then said to himself, letting his tears fall, "Oh, what's the point? No matter what I did, I seem to push him further and further away. Maybe I should just as he said and stop living in my dreams,"

Then, all of the sudden, he heard a voice behind him, "Don't be so quick to give up, Soren…"

Soren then jumped and turn around to see a snowy owl behind him; it was Samuel. The Barn Owl was shocked and confused on how he got in without him noticing; he guessed he was so caught up in his memories that he ignored everything else. Regaining his word, Soren asked, "Who are you?"

The snowy owl, still retaining his smile as he did with Kludd (**Note: This conversation is taking place a few moments after his conversation with Kludd, he's a ghost, so he can pull that off**) answered, "I am Samuel, and I happen to be an acquaintance of your brother Kludd."

Soren stiffened at the mention of his brother, and then took a slight battle stance and said, "How did you know about him? Are you one of his men?"

The wise owl then said, amused by the young one's reaction, "Oh no, my dear boy, I am not associated with the Pure Ones, as you can see, I am not a Tyto."

Soren then thought, "_He does have a point there._"

Samuel just laughed, saying, "Indeed, I do have a point."

The young Guardian jumped when he practically replied to his thought, and he asked, "You can read my thoughts?!"

Samuel merely answered, "Indeed, it is one of my abilities as a starseer." Then he saw Soren's confused expression and said, "A starseer is someone gifted with the power of starsight, the ability to gaze into the future. That is also how I knew about your brother." The Barn Owl remembered his father telling him and Kludd stories about the starseers, although unlike his belief in the Guardians, he and Kludd both thought they were a myth.

The elderly owl continued, "I also know about your parents, Noctus and Marella, your sister, Eglantine, your nursemaid, Mrs. Plithiver, your friends Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight, your hero Lyze of Keil, aka Ezylryb, and as I knew your brother's love interest, I know you have feelings for a girl named Otulissa." Soren was dumbfounded by the owl's all-knowing nature (and the fact Kludd would have a love interest), but then realize something he hadn't asked the snowy owl yet.

He asked "Look, Samuel, I don't mean to come off rude, but why had you come here? And why shouldn't I give up?"

Samuel then sighs and his expression turn to one of concern, "Because…your brother is going to come here tonight, and he will need you to help him." Soren then looked at him with unbelieving eyes and Samuel then said "No, I am not making it up; I am bound by my superiors to always tell the truth." And then he turned to the entrance of the hollow as the moon started to rise and said to Soren "A storm is a-coming, and with it, a monster whose darkness outmatches Metalbeak, his wife, and more importantly, your brother, even all of them put together."

Soren was horrified, could there possibly be someone a lot worse than Metalbeak, Nyra, and his brother? Then Samuel turned to him and said "However, with the help of your friends, the evil queen, and your brother, this darkness can be eradicated, but…"

Soren repeated "But?"

The snowy owl closed his eyes and continued "You will all be put to the test as you go to confront _him_, and you…" he pointed at Soren, "must learn to realize that your brother has his own reasons for the things he done, instead of blaming something that has little to do with it…"

Lot of things was going through Soren's head as he became deep in thought, why would Kludd and Nyra need their help? Who was _him_? What did he mean by 'needing to realize that his brother has his own reasons?' but the biggest question was 'when was he coming tonight?' Then he looked up and asked, "When…" and realizes that the snowy owl was gone. He went to the entrance and peek outside to see where he gone. Knowing that the owl probably left while he was in thought, he went back into his hollow. Knowing that the celebration won't be for another hour or so, he decided to sleep in a little, although he doubts he would get any…

Outside the Tree of Ga'Hoole, Samuel looked back and simply sighs, and says, "Maybe, he just might…" Then he started shivering and said, "Well, time to help the poor brother out of his situation" and he faded away, to assist a certain owl in need.

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**A/N: Whew, another hard and long chapter out of the way. Again, this chapter was originally planned to include the celebration and Soren running into Kludd again, but then I realize that they would be too many things happening in this chapter. So I split the original plan into two chapters, and simply made this chapter about Soren meeting Samuel while angsting a bit about how he could not save his brother. Take note of my comment in that chapter, that the whole conversation between Samuel and him took place shortly after Kludd and Samuel's conversation, and that Samuel is indeed a spirit, who can travel between two places in mere seconds (And the scene in the end is right before he helped Kludd and Nyra escaped Skarmoris). As to whom exactly Samuel is, well, that will be revealed later on. This chapter took a lot of work, as I had to watch the fight scene between Soren and Kludd in the end (and write down the quotes) in order to get the flashback right, as well as the quotes from New Beginnings and Worlds Apart. I apologize again with all the recaps, but I swear, this will be the last time I recap all that stuff. Next chapter, WE WILL see Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight, and all the other characters (although I don't know many Guardians Owls beside the king and queen, Ezylryb, Madame Plonk, Bubo so those will probably been the only ones mentioned). Anywho, READ AND REVIEW, and I'll see you next time.**

**_Artworks stuff is appreciated._**


	6. The Good, The Bad, and The Small

**A/N: Bad news: I somehow managed to lose my USB, which had my story on it, this isn't the end for this though, since I can just copy my chapters back onto a new document, and I will get a new USB soon, hopefully, I won't lose that one. Good News: A new update for all you readers! Quick question: Are you guys getting sick of these author notes, because I keep feeling the need to use them at the beginning and end of each chapter. Well, today we get to see all our favorite Guardians as well as continuing our plot…with a festival! For romantics buff who are wondering what the pairings are going to be, I will said this, there will be the obvious pairings (if you don't know who Soren and Kludd are paired with, I will send my gang to kick your butt!), a not-so-famous pairing (with two well-known characters), and at last, a pairing (both canon and not yaoi) that had never been attempted before in this site and a canon/OC pairing for one certain owl (no, it's not Digger nor Twilight). Anyway, with explanations out of the way, let's get started in here! (Black Eyed Peas reference lol!).**

**P.S. Am I updating too fast? Should I wait a certain amount of time before posting the next chapter?**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mention.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, and two more owls that will be introduced in this chapter.**

**EDIT [8/26/12]: Did a quick tune up on this chapter...**

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Chapter Six: The Good, The Bad, and The Small…

An hour later, owls (at least those who were still sleeping) were starting to get up and getting ready to start the night, as everyone knew that tonight marks one year since the death of Metalbeak, and they couldn't have been happier. A feast was arranged to take place, hence why many owls, including the officials, were up setting things up. Soren lay awake in his hollow, pondering what his mysterious visitor had said.

"_What is this monster that he was talking about, and how can someone be worse than Metalbeak? I heard all the misdeeds he had done in the past decades and I doubt slavedriving and murder is that easy to top, is it?_" he thought, and he remember what the old owl said about his brother, "_your brother is going to come here tonight, and he will need you to help him._" This prompted Soren to ask himself "_How? No Pure Ones had ever found Ga'Hoole, let alone my brother and Nyra._"

He just shook the thought of it; there was no way that Kludd would be coming here tonight, because if he remembered correctly, his one year of being king of the Pure Ones was coming at midnight, and surely Kludd wouldn't need his help, but then the thought of the monster came back, and he thought, "_Was he implying that the monster would attack the Pure Ones?_", and he started to worry, but then he just shook at it again, "_I'm sure 'Metalbeak' and his lackeys can take care of him, they're not that incompetent, are they?_" His thought was eventually interrupted when he heard flapping, and he got up to see his friend, Gylfie outside her hollow.

"Hello, Soren!" The Elf Owl greeted her friend, as Soren came out, and then noticed his tired expression. "Are you okay, Soren? You looked like you had a bad daymare." She asked.

Soren shook his head "Oh, no, I just…couldn't sleep because I was excited for the feast." He lied, hoping Gylfie wouldn't look into it.

However, she looked at him smugly and said "Right…are you sure it's the feast, or a certain short-eared owl that's going to be there?"

Soren immediately blushed at the mention of his girlfriend, Otulissa and was relieved that she mistaken it for that. He said, "I guess it's that…" Then he changed the subject "So, do you have any plans for the festival?"

"Not really, I guess I'll be hanging out with Digger…" she answered, and she noticed him giving him a smirk, "What?"

Soren chuckled "You know what, you…and Digger." Gylfie instantly blush embarrassedly at that notion. Sure, she hanged out with Digger a lot lately, but that was because he was fun to be around, and he had the most wonderful green eyes to match that personality… but she only liked him as a friend, but Soren always seems to tease her about it, but unfortunately for her, Soren was no fool, and he knew that the small owl had feelings for the Burrowing Owl. The only problem was that she wouldn't admit it.

Gylfie then said, "Well, _Soren_, if you are done with your childish games, Digger and Twilight are expecting us at the main hall."

Soren just laughed again, and then said, "Okay…let's not keep them waiting," and they flew off to meet their friends…

Meanwhile, at the main chamber, the two friends, Digger and Twilight were busy with their own matter, that matter being Digger having to listen to Twilight practice his lute, as he was part of the musical entertainment. Digger flinched as he heard Twilight played again, and screeched, "For crying out loud, why I have to listen to you make glaux-awful noises!"

Twilight, offended, stop playing and said, "Glaux-awful? Lad, this is one of my masterpieces! I have been working on this for quite some time just so I could play it just right for this day!"

Digger rolled his eyes, saying, "Oh, please, you just came up with it last week!" Twilight opened his beak to say something, but he had no rebuttal as he droop his eyes.

Feeling guilty, Digger added, "But, I guess with Madame Plonk's chorus, it will sound brilliant."

Twilight gave him a smile and then asked, "By the way, Digger, do you have any plans for the feast? You know, with a special female owl?"

Digger blushed, but then shook his head "Not really, because…you know, there really isn't any other burrowing owls here".

Twilight looked at him with a look that said "Really?" and he said "OK, what about a special female _Elf _owl?"

The Burrowing Owl immediately froze and blushes even harder, "_Of course the big lummock have to bring her up…_"

As Soren knew about Gylfie's crush on Digger, the Great Gray Owl had learned about his infatuation with the female owl. Sure, Digger wasn't ashamed of this feeling, but it had been plaguing him for the past few months, every time he was near her, he's unable to think straight and he kept on sneaking peeks at her when she wasn't looking, and he _loved _her hazel eyes, and personally thought that it was the most beautiful thing in the world. It is a wonder why, if someone felt so strongly about someone, why doesn't he tell her?

It wasn't that he didn't want to, it's because he felt that _he _wasn't worthy of her (**romantic cliché, I know**). Next to her, he was mentally challenged, and honestly, do you think that a smart owl like her would like an average-intelligent guy like him? (**What do you think? XD**)

Digger was in thought when Twilight asked "Uh…Digger? Earth to Digger…"

The smaller owl immediately snapped out of it and said, "No, oh, no, sure her and I do plan to hang out at the festival, but just as friends!"

Twilight just look at him and said, "Right…anyway I think I hear them coming right now!"

Indeed, Soren and Gylfie landed and the Barn Owl inquired, "Hey guys, how's Twilight's music coming along?"

Digger immediately said, "Don't ask…"

Twilight gave him a 'oh, geez, thanks' glance and then said to Soren "Hey, lad, you never going to believe what I heard from the king and queen."

The young owl looked at him oddly and said, "What?"

The big owl said, "Tonight, the 'hero' who had slain Metalbeak will be tasked with telling the whole tree his story of how he came to us and save us all!" Gylfie and Digger both gasped and Soren himself, just stood there, surprised.

Then they heard a grizzled voice, "Don't look so surprised, lad". The four heroes turned around to see Ezylryb, one of the tree's elders, who had a confident smirk.

Soren greeted his hero, "Ezylryb, it's nice to see you; I reckon you had something to do with this…"

Ezylryb chuckled and then replied, "Oh no, everyone was for the idea, heck, even the new guy was for it, and he's usually never for anything."

"Wow, I don't know what to say…except that I am honored…" Soren replied a little embarrassed.

Then the Screech Owl said in an amused voice, "Well, no need to be modest, everyone will like to know _all _the details of how you saved this grizzled old owl and defeat Metalbeak."

Soren stiffed as he repeated "All the details?"

The Screech Owl, noticing his odd expression, confirmed, "Why yes, from escaping St. Aggies to finding Ga'Hoole to gizzard-flying through the flames to…hmmm, I could of sworn there were something before you came in and attacked Metalbeak..."

The four young owls shared uneasy glances, when Ezylryb finished, "Ah yes, flying through a horrific battlefield, everyone will want to know that!" The four owls exhaled and the old owl smiled, "Well, you guys better stay put, as the king and queen will be here shortly." And as if on cue, the two snowy owls Boron and Barran came in and then everyone in the tree gathered in the main hall.

And then Boron spoke, "Greetings, all of Ga'Hoole, tonight is a momentous night as we celebrate our one-year victory against the Pure Ones at St. Aegolius, where a certain owl had slain one of the worst threats (**Yes, there are other bad things that the Guardians deal with**) that most of you owlets and owls may remember him as…Metalbeak. "Some of the owls muttered a few words before Boron continued, "Yes, because of one of our own's treachery, we had almost perished when he unleashed flecks upon us rendering us useless and having bats finish us off, but due to the bravery of four heroes…" He stared at Soren and the others, "The Pure Ones' plan had failed, and Soren here…" he pointed to him, "killed Metalbeak…however, his legacy still lived on in this new owl who had taken the helm of his late master; we may not know who this owl is, but nonetheless, we shall defeat him and the queen and deliver swift justice upon them."

This prompted a few cheers, and a nervous stirring in Soren's gizzard, "However," Boron continued, "That is a story for another day, as we will celebrate our heroes who saved the Guardians and defeated Metalbeak! Let the feast begin!" Everyone begin cheering as the celebration begins.

Soon, the festival was in full swing, as music was playing (courtesy of Twilight's lute and Madame Plonk's choir); owls were dancing, and were practically having a good time. Soren was busy at a table, still mulling over what the king had said, when a beautiful Short-Eared Owl called him, "Soren!" he looked up to see his girlfriend walking towards him, "How are you enjoying the feast in your honor?"

Soren smiled and crooned "More now that you are here." Otulissa giggled and look around, "Well everyone seems in a merry mood."

Indeed, everyone was enjoying themselves, Twilight and Madame Plonk were playing beautiful music (in contrast to Twilight's music from earlier), Digger was telling his jokes to the children, one of them being Soren's sister Eglantine, as they were amused by the Burrowing Owl's jokes, not only that, Gylfie, who was sitting behind the children and helping Digger out, was amused along with them. Then he looked to the table with the officials, where they were have a merry time drinking and telling each other stories from back in the days.

He then asked the young, pretty owl "May I have this dance?"

"Yes, you shall" she replied, as Soren took her wings into his own as they took to the dance floor.

For what seemed like an hour (but in reality, it was ten minutes), they enjoyed each embrace as they danced around on the floor, looking at each others with lovestrucked eyes.

Meanwhile, watching from the sidelines, Twilight (who was taking a short break) said to Digger, who was stuffing his face with grubs at the buffet table, as someone else entertained the children, "Don't you think you should ask a certain someone to dance?" while pointing to Gylfie who was watching the others danced.

Digger blushed and gulped the food in his beak, and said, "I don't know, Twilight, I'm not much of a dancer…"

"Oh come on, lad, you never know if you don't try" the Great Gray Owl said, while pushing him towards her.

Unfortunately, Twilight's strength and Digger's clumsiness caused him to crash into some of the choir's instruments, making a big crash sound, prompting people to look at Twilight, who was muted, but then said, "Well, that didn't work out like I planned."

Gylfie, who heard the crash, quickly flew to Digger's side and asked "Digger, are you okay?"

The burrowing owl opens his eyes to see four of her, and said dizzily, "Yeah, I was wonderin' if I can ask one of you to…" he fainted before finishing his sentence.

"Well, I better get you to the infirmary," Gylfie said, so with all her strength, she picked up the conked-out owl as they walked off to get medical treatment.

Twilight just sighed, as Mrs. P, who was enjoying the music before she saw him pushed Digger, slithered aside him and said, "Come on, Twilight, dear, we all know you didn't mean to push him that hard…" hoping it would cheer him up.

Twilight replied, "I know…but I kind of wish they would just admit their feelings for each other already. Everyone else knows they have it bad for each other and they're not getting any younger, you know."

The elderly snake laughed and said, "I realize that, but just let things take their course and it will happen all in due time." Then she gazed back to her family of Noctus and Marella, who weren't in such cheery mood as the other, and sighed, "I just wished the same was true for them."

Soren, who was still dancing with Otulissa, oblivious to the fiasco with Digger, noticed his two down-trodden parents, and said to his love, "Uh…could you excuse me one moment?" Otulissa nodded as Soren flew over to them and said, "Hey, ma, da, how are you holding up?"

Noctus sighed, "Well, son, we've been better, but…" Soren understands, as he told his parents that Kludd had died during the fight, which he believed was the right thing to say…or so he thought.

Marella then, with tears in her eyes, started to whimper, "Oh, Noctus, why did he had to die?" as she sobbed into her mate's shoulder while he tried to comfort her.

Soren looked with guilt as he saw his parents suffering; he asked himself in his head, "_Did I do the right thing? Was it better to tell them that their son had died or that he became one of the most despicable things in this world?_" Then he saw Ezylryb at one of the table, and thinking he would know what to do, he quickly flew over to him and addressed him, "Uh, Ezylryb?"

The Screech Owl quickly answered, without turning to face him, "Not now, lad, I'm busy with something,"

Soren was about to ask 'with what?', when he saw where the old owl was facing. It was another elderly Screech Owl, that was female, and Soren asked, "Who is she?"

Ezylryb, annoyed that he didn't know, replied, "That's Alice, she's one of the new nurse owls; rumored to be one of the best healers in the owls kingdom, how could you not know that?"

He cringed at his hero's anger, but then soon realized… "Ah, I get it, you like her…" he said in a sing-songy voice.

Ezylryb froze a bit, but then grabbed Soren by the shoulder and chuckled and then gave him a dead serious glare, asking, "Is there something you want, boy?"

Soren gulped and said, "Yes, I have a question…" he took a long breath as he started, "Would you tell the people you loved if someone they know had done something awful or lie about it completely and say that they died?" He said all in one go.

The Screech Owl looked at him confused and said, "What kind of question is that?"

Soren then sighed, knowing that he can't fool him, and was about to speak when Boron called him, "Soren, my boy, please come hither…"

Soren looked at the king and looked at his hero, and Ezylryb said, "Well? Go on, we'll talk later…"

Soren came to the center table when the king and queen sat, and then Boron offered him a seat, "Here, you should be comfortable…" and then he turned out to the entire crowd, "May I have all your undivided attention, please?" Everyone went silenced, as he continued, "The time has come, for the owl that had killed Metalbeak with his own two talons…"

Soren interrupted, "Well, it wasn't my two talons; it was a very sharp stick"

Boron ignored him and said, "…to tell us his story of heroism when he came to us, save our Guardians, and lived to tell the tale." Then everyone turned to Soren, who was silenced. Then he cleared his throat and started "Well…it started one night…" and that's when Soren begin his whole story of how he and his brother (his parents flinched at his mention) were kidnapped by the Pure Ones, escaped St. Aeggies, how me met his friends, found Ga'Hoole while traveling through the Sea of Hoolemere, how they spent the days learning about him, how they found out Allomere's treachery, and the part that most of the owls known very well, when Soren and co. came to their rescue, and then Ezylryb's favorite part, when Soren managed to kill Metalbeak.

As he neared the end of his story, he finished with what he usually said when he told the story to owlets. "And so they say, Nyra escaped, and Kludd? Well, Kludd was never found..."

This received a few mutterings and a quiet sob from Marella. Then, there was a "Waiiiiit a minute…" and everyone turned to a table that seemingly had no one, then a small Elf Owl hopped onto a table. The other officials, including the King and Queen, groaned as they recognized the owl as LaRoche (**not an archaic name I know, but I think it works**), an official from another kingdom far south who had taken Allomere's place as a member of the Parliament.

The Elf Owl was much like Gylfie, but more masculine, and with a grizzled look like Ezylryb, and a moon scar on his left eye. However, his personality was less than favorable, as he was a strict rule-follower, who had little to no tolerance for those who defiles them, even if they were owlets. He also thinks highly of himself and always condescends upon other owls; unfortunately, he also suffered from an inferiority complex and is usually ignored by other members of the official due to his size and tendency to complain about everything. They could only imagine what he wants…

Soren said, "What is it, Mr. LaRoche?" hoping it was something about how he gave the story and not about 'certain things' he failed to mention.

LaRoche cleared his throat and said, "I noticed that in your story, that whenever your 'brother' came across, you seem to try to avoid talking about him, like when you were escaping St. Aeggies, you said Kludd got caught, but it sounded like you making that part up as you go."

Soren groaned to himself and explained, "Well, things were pretty crazy, and I had trouble recalling what happened." But LaRoche continued, "…Yet the way you explained how that prissy wretch (**Nyra**) got this 'Grimble' off, you said that someone distracted him…"

Soren tried to come with another reason but LaRoche landed on Soren's table and look him face to face, "…and before you went off to kill Metalbeak, you said Kludd had died protecting you from a Pure One while you were heading straight for Metalbeak…yet a witness saw you flying from the burning forest with a stick in hand, looking like you just killed someone...and way before that, a witness remember seeing a barn owl among the Pure Ones, one that look almost exactly like you…doesn't that seem weird?"

This caused people to mutter and then Noctus, not willing to let this midget owl talk to his son like that, spoke up, "What exactly are you getting at? That my late son was a traitor and that Soren killed him and lied to us about it? That is absurd! Tell him, Soren!"

However, Soren was unable to speak, and LaRoche grinned, knowing that he caught him. With a spread of his wings, Soren quickly said, "I need to get fresh air!" before flying off.

"Ya see! That kid is hiding something!" LaRoche screamed, before Ezylryb gave him a smack in a head and yelled, "That's enough out of you!" As he returned to his seat leaving LaRoche silent, as he too returned to his seat.

Meanwhile, Digger and Gylfie were returning to the hall and the Elf Owl asked, "Are you sure you're okay?"

Digger answered with confidence, "Oh, sure, ma'am just said it was a little concussion, nothing I can't handle!" Then all of the sudden, Soren flew past them, surprising them.

Gylfie asked, confused, "…Was that Soren that just flew by?"

"I don't know, but all of the sudden I feel dizzy…" Digger said as he faint once more, shocking Gylfie once more.

Soren landed atop one of the branch that overhanged the roof of the main hall as he started panting, and soon he started crying, "_Why…why couldn't that damn owl leave well enough alone?_" he woefully thought in his head. He knew that flying off probably confirmed LaRoche's suspicion, but he just had to get out of there. Even worse, he did so in front of the whole tree including the king and queen, his parents, his hero, Otulissa…this was a bad situation, indeed.

He then looked to the sky, which was now stormy, and cried out, "GLAUX! SAMUEL! WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO?!" and then he looked down muttering, "…please, I need your guidance…", when he returned his gaze to the sky, he saw something coming…

* * *

Around the same time the feast had started, Kludd was tailing the snowy owl Samuel, trying to catch his attention, with Nyra following, not knowing how her leader was going on about. To make matters worse, they were doing so in the midst of a horrible storm, and Kludd was screaming out to him, "SAMUEL! YOU GLAUX-DAMN OWL! WHY WON'T YOU ANSWER ME?!" To Nyra, however, she saw no one except Kludd screaming in mid-air.

She thought, "_By glaux, I think he had gone crazy!_"

Figuring that this had to stop, Nyra flew in front of him, prompting Kludd to ask, "Nyra?! What are you doing?! He's getting away!"

Nyra ignored him and instead gave him a fierce look, "Kludd! Who are you talking about?! You have been flying and screaming like a maniac for the past few hours!" This shocked Kludd. How could she have not seen a white sprinkin' owl? Then the ex-queen continued "Look where we are!" as she and Kludd looked around to find themselves flying over waves of waters (**The Sea of Hoolemere**), and screamed, "WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE! WE'RE HAVE NO IDEA WHERE GA'HOOLE IS! AND YOU INSIST ON FOLLOWING A FIGMENT OF YOUR IMAGINATION?! WELL HERE'S…"

Kludd started ignoring her yelling when he saw the owl again, but what he saw behind the owl was something that looked like…a tree? Then everything clicked. Kludd flew past Nyra again, angering her even more, "Kludd?! What are you doing now?!"

Kludd looked back real quick, saying, "I think I found Ga'Hoole!" as he flew.

All Nyra said was "Think?!" as she pursued her leader again.

As Kludd flew through the storm going towards the silhouette, he failed to notice that it started to hail, and he was being pelted with bits of ice. Then, two hunks of ice unluckily hit him square in the eyes, blinding him as he screeched in pain, shaking his head as he flew forward while losing altitude, unable to see anything. As they both flew, they eventually escaped the storm, and finally saw Ga'Hoole… Nyra was at loss of words as she marveled at the beauty of the place her enemies resided.

She yelled to Kludd, "Milord…you did it…you found the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole!" as she turned to see her king barreling downwards real fast as he could not see, and she screamed, "KLUDD!" This was the last thing he heard, as he flew blindly, trying to regain his sight…

Soren noticed something flying towards him without stopping, and before he could have time to react, the mysterious object bashed into him and they both crashed through the weak roof of the main hall. The whole hall were rather peeved with LaRoche's questioning of Soren's story and were waiting for their hero to return, when all of the sudden, they saw two owls crashed through the roof. After the dust cleared, they instantly recognized Soren, but the other owl they didn't see till the dust cleared some more when they saw Metalbeak's helm...prompting everyone to grow silent with fright. Soren coughed as he look to see what hit him and then his blood froze, as he saw his brother atop him, and soon after, the new Metalbeak, finally regaining his sight, opened his eyes to see his brother under him, shocking him.

"Kludd?" "Soren?" they both whispered at the same time.

Then Nyra screamed as she landed, "My king!" before she realized where she just said that.

The king and queen, Ezylryb, LaRoche, all the other officials, Otulissa, Soren and Kludd's parents, the children, Gylfie and Digger, (who came to the hall after Digger woke up from being unconscious once more), Twilight, Mrs. P, and everyone else stared in horror at the new king and the old queen of the Pure Ones, who looked around and found themselves in a situation that would be any Pure One's nightmare. Everyone was silent, when Bubo, the Horned Owl blacksmith, looked at his drink and them and said, "Boy, I gotta lay off the wine…"

* * *

**A/N: Man, this chapter had been as bad as the last writing-wise, but at least we get to see all our favorite Guardians. As for the pairings, you had seen Soren/Otulissa, Kludd/Nyra, and you seen Digger/Gylfie (that was the non-famous pairing), and a hint at Ezylryb/OC. Speaking of OCs, I introduced two new ones in this story. The first one was Alice, a Screech Owl like Ezylryb, although we won't be seeing her much in this story, but I assure you, they will be an intimate moment (not M-Rated) between the two in the far future, she is voiced by Glenn Close (played Cruella de Vil in the live action '101 Dalmatians' and it's sequel, '102 Dalmatians'), as for the other, allow me to introduce to you…LaRoche. He is an Elf Owl like Gylfie, except that he is nothing like our sweet Gylfie, as he is mean, egotistical, and has a small-guy complex. This jerk of an owl was inspired by J.J. LaRoche (hence the name), a character from 'The Mentalist'; he was the head of CBI for all of season 3 when their last one left the show, and he was a total jerk to Patrick and the others, and was very strict. The other character that inspired him was none other than O'Hare from 'The Lorax' (2012), an easily-angered midget who refused to be ignored and undermined, in fact, LaRoche is voiced by Rob Riggle, the guy who played O'Hare (I hope this pleases anyone who is a fan of the new Lorax and/or O'Hare). Don't worry though, this mean but small owl will only make one more appearance in this story, and that is next chapter. As for possible sequels, he may play a bigger role…As for the chapter itself, I felt I was winging it at parts…A lot had went down in this chapter, as there's a major hint at Digger/Gylfie, a Soren/Otulissa moment, a moment with Soren's parents, mentions of many other characters, we meet Alice and LaRoche, Soren has more angst, we see our Pure One couple again, as they find Ga'Hoole, but unfortunately, Kludd came crashing in at a very bad, bad time… And I apologize if any of the characters were OOC, but give me a break, guys, this chapter was 13 ####ing pages long (disregarding spaces inbetween) in Word! As for you possible Skarmoris fans, don't worry, he will make an appearance next chapter…oh next chapter will probably be hell for me…READ AND REVIEW! (P.S. Love the humor at the end?)**

**To Crazybird101: You have my permission to bash LaRoche, since I made him one of those characters you love ever so much to hate! I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**_Artworks stuff are appreciated. I am serious, if you are a deviantartist and you like the Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I will greatly appreciate any artwork you make for this story, including pictures of Skarmoris, LaRoche, and anyone else! Thank you!_**


	7. The Usurped Monarch and the Parliament

**A/N: Okay, time for round seven, as our adventure is about to begin for our four heroes and the two Pure Ones, and guess what? An extra hero will be joining them. Who? Well read to find out.**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**Bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, and LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and yet another owl of minor importance in this chapter.**

* * *

Chapter Seven: The Usurped Monarch and the Parliament

Time seemed to stand still that night, as Kludd and Nyra stood there, surrounded by the Guardians and their fellow owls, all in silence, and Kludd turned back to his brother, looking at him with shock and horror. That one sentence from the Horned Owl just prompted everyone to stare at him for a few seconds before shifting their gaze back to the Pure Ones.

Kludd got off him, causing gasps from the viewers, and as he look towards one way, they gasps some more, and he turned around, thus making more gasps (**Jim Carrey's How The Grinch Stole Christmas reference! XD**), and Kludd merely said, "Seriously? Hadn't you ever seen a Pure One before?" this then caused all the Guardians (except Soren and his friends) to leap into battle stance all around him and Nyra.

Boron stepped forth and addressed him with a stern look, "You…what are you doing here? How did you find this place?"

Kludd was about to answer, another voice spoken, "Well, isn't it obvious, my king?"

The Barn Owl looked around to see where the voice came from, and then the voice said, "Down here, ya numbskull!"

Kludd looked down to see LaRoche, looking peeved as usual, and the new Metalbeak asked with a bit of mocking in his voice, "Uh…who are you? I don't recall the Guardians letting baby owlets into their ranks."

LaRoche, glared at him, and said with rage, "I'll have you know that I am LaRoche, representative from the far south kingdoms, replacement for that traitorous chicken known as Allomere, and to you, Metalbeak…" LaRoche then jump upon his helm and look him into the eyes, as he did Soren, "I am your superior..."

This angered Kludd as he shook him off, flinging him into Bubo, knocking Bubo out, and a few seconds later, the old Elf Owl got up and dusted himself off and said to his king as he returned to his side, "He's obviously here to attack our kingdom…" This caused some panic amongst the crowd and he continued, making more panic, "Kill our men…steal our children…RAPE OUR WOMEN!" The last part made everyone paused as they look at him, and one of the Guardians whispered in his ear and he then said embarrassedly, "Okay, scratch the last part. Still, he and that vile woman…" he pointed to Nyra, who gave an offended glare, "…are here to take over our kingdom!"

This got the crowd back to panicking again, as the Guardians started to close in on them when Kludd screamed, "WAIT!" This caused both the Guardians and the panicking people to cease, as the Metalbeak, trying to keep himself from screaming, said "Please…Me and Nyra request to speak with the Parliament..." as he glanced at Soren, who was still laying on the floor, confused and shocked by what just happened.

LaRoche sneered, "What makes you think that we're going to listen…"

"Okay…" Boron interrupted.

LaRoche, shocked by his king's compliance, complained, "But…my liege…"

Barran, the queen, said to him with a glare, "The king has spoken..." and she then ordered, as she gave the Pure Ones a suspicious look, "Guardians…please escort our 'guests' to the parliament chamber."

A few Guardians surrounded Kludd and Nyra, and then one of them said, "This way please…" Kludd nodded, as he and Nyra, who followed, started moving.

Then Boron said, "Everyone, please resume your feast, while me and the others talk to them." The owls complied as they resumed celebrating the feast, and Soren and the others were about to do the same when Boron added, "except you four…" The band gave each other uneasy glances as they follow the king to the parliament chamber.

A few minutes later, Kludd and Nyra found themselves in the middle of a big chamber, surrounded by the elders, and at the head of the room, both the king and queen were perched and stood before them, like a judge before the accused. Then Boron said, "Now do you care to explain why you had attacked this young lad here?" as he pointed to Soren, who were perched to the right of the two Pure Ones, along with his friends.

Soren had a worried face upon him, and Kludd merely said, "First off, I didn't attack him, I crashed into him by accident, as I was blinded by a few hailstones…you know, from the storm outside your forsaken home?" A big thunder sounded, confirming that part and he continued, "And I bet the boy did something to deserve it." This prompted a few glares from the elders, especially from LaRoche (who was to the left of the two) and a half-glare, half-questioning look from Ezylryb (who was to the northwest of the two).

Ignoring the new Metalbeak's remark, Boron asked, "Why had you come here, on the night celebrating a year since your late king's death?"

Nyra then said, with pain in her voice, "Don't you mean, relishing in the murder of our king, and the pain of the Pure Ones?"

Barran went on the defensive, seething with venom, "He deserved what he got, you…"

"Dear, please control your anger..." her husband interrupted, and turn to Kludd, "I will ask again…why have you come here?"

Kludd looked at Nyra, who knew what he was about to said next, and he step forward, and muttered something. Then Boron asked "What was that?"

Kludd muttered something again, except a little louder, but still unintelligible, causing Ezylryb to yell, "Oh…OUT WITH IT ALREADY!"

Kludd returned a glare and then said in an attempted proud voice, "Because…we need your help…"

There was silence in the room, till a loud laugh echoed, specifically from the small Elf Owl LaRoche, as he was practically grabbing his gizzard with his wings, and everyone stared at him, while Kludd gave him a death glare, and he screeched "I am serious!"

LaRoche continued laughing, and Nyra yelled angrily at him, "Stop mocking us!" but then none other than Ezylryb, who was glaring at him, smacked LaRoche in the head again.

He scolded, "LaRoche, they may be our sworn enemies, but us Guardians have the decency to not mock them when they're down!"

"Oh please, they're lying!" LaRoche rebutted.

Kludd, in anger, flew up at the Elf Owl, but was blocked by two Guardians; as he struggled against the two figures, he screeched, "We are telling the truth!" as the two soldiers then pushed the king back to the center.

LaRoche sneered at him, "Oh yeah, prove it…"

Kludd then said in an escalating tone, "Do you honestly think, that me and Nyra would be so stupid, to come to the homeland of our enemies, alone, without any reinforcements?! Do you Guardians think so little of us?!"

Then, the old Elf Owl said "Alone? How can we be sure?"

Kludd, narrowing his eyes at him, gave a look to Nyra; she understood and let out an owl shriek, a signal that Soren and the others remembered the evil queen using during their first fight to signal the bats and her comrades. Everyone in the room took battle stances for five minutes, but surely enough, no one ever came.

Kludd said, "Does that prove anything?"

LaRoche was about to come up with another rebuttal when the king snowy owl said, "Ok, why do you need our help?"

Kludd sighed and said, "Earlier tonight, we…were attacked…by three owls…"

This prompted a few mutters when LaRoche asked, "Are you meaning to tell me, that you came here, stirring up panic, just to said you were attacked by three measly owls?!"

Kludd rebutted, "They weren't just any owls…they were highly-skilled and the leader single-handily killed ten of our men!" This shocked everyone in the room and Soren then recalled what Samuel said, "_A monster whose darkness outmatches Metalbeak, his wife, and more importantly, your brother…_" and the _him _that Samuel referred to.

Soren thought, "_Could Kludd possibly be talking about the same owl as Samuel was?_"

Boron then questioned, "What was this owl's name?"

Kludd then gave a dead serious look when he said the name with the greatest hint of venom he could luster, "**Skarmoris**...**Lord Skarmoris**...that was his name."

This caused the elders to nervously mutter, as Kludd continued, "He came to our hideout, after killing ten soldiers, claiming that he was once a Pure One, and started saying horrible things about our late king and us..." He pointed to himself and Nyra, "After he said that he was there to take my throne, I had my soldiers attack him, but he, along with his two soldiers, manage to kill most of them, even I couldn't touch him."

Soren and the others gave each other nervous glances, and Ezylryb started to show concern about this 'Skarmoris'.

Kludd continued, "Soon, he had his swords down to my throat, while his soldiers had Nyra pinned down. That was when..." Kludd then looked down with shame and anger, "My lieutenant Nix and everyone else decided to side with him. Soon, it was just me and Nyra against Skarmoris and his 'new followers'..." then he pondered whether or not to mention how he and Nyra broke free and how they found them. He opted against it since he was already on their bad side and saying a random loud screech helped them would not make their case any better. Kludd continued, "Me and Nyra barely managed to escape with our lives, and it was a miracle that we managed to find you."

This story had everyone whispering as they wondered whether or not to believe that this 'Skarmoris' had indeed taken over the Pure Ones and that they truly came to ask them for their help. However, LaRoche, being the cynical owl he was, merely spat, "Oh come on! What proof of this 'highly-skilled' owl do we have?"

He proved a good point as the others (for once) nodded in agreement, and Boron said, "For once, I agree with LaRoche..."

This caused disbelief for Kludd and Nyra, and a little glare from LaRoche with him thinking "_What does he mean, for once?_"

Boron then went forward with his statement, "The only proof we have of this possible threat is your word, which I'm afraid to say, wasn't good to begin with. So I'm afraid I have no choice but to..."

The King was interrupted when the doors to the chamber slightly opened to reveal a Little Owl (**that's an actual owl species**), and LaRoche screeched "HEY! DO YOU MIND?! DON'T YOU SEE WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF KICKING THESE DAMN PURE ONES OUT?!"

This prompted another smack from Ezylryb as he said, "Let Pip speak!"

Pip was the name of that Little Owl and unlike LaRoche, was actually liked and appreciated by the Guardians. He was a member of the Scouting chaw (**I honestly don't know if there is one for sure, but I'll just say there is**), and a pretty good one, unlike a treacherous owl that will not be named. However though, due to possibly his size and his shyness, he only talks by whispering, and whenever he hop (he does that instead of walking), he always made a 'pip' sound, thus earning him the nickname 'Pip'.

Pip then came in, and hop up some steps leading up to Boron and Barran's perch (all while making the pip sound with each hop), and Boron lowered his head to listen to him whisper.

As he did, Boron made sounds such as "Ah huh" and "Hmmm", and ended with a question, "Are you sure about this, Pip?" and then the Little Owl did a 'cross my heart' and the two gave a nod.

Then he hopped/'pip'ed out the parliament chamber, and Kludd merely asked in confusion, "What in Glaux's name was that about?"

Boron answered, "That was Pip, one of our best scouters in all of Ga'Hoole, and he just confirmed your story."

This prompted Kludd and Nyra to say, "What?"

Soren and his gang repeated, "What?"

The other elders repeated as well, "What?"

"WHAT?!" screeched LaRoche, in major disbelief that the two Pure Ones were right.

Boron confirmed "Yes, apparently, Pip was making his rounds when he took a detour over St. Aegolius and noticed that...no was there."

"WHAT?!" The new Metalbeak yelled, "Everyone? Gone?" he asked.

Boron nodded "Yes, however, he saw two Pure Ones flying and overheard something about a 'Skarmoris' and a place called '_Le Pilier de la Suprématie_' (**That's French, by the way**).

Nyra's blood ran cold when she heard the place's name and repeated to herself, "The Pillar of Supremacy..."

Ezylryb heard her and asked, "What did you said, Nyra?"

Nyra, sighed, and said, "_The Pillar of Supremacy_, the name of the place in English tongue, it was once home to us Pure Ones during the reign of our king before Metalbeak, but when he left and passed it on to my late husband, he uprooted us a year later and moved us to St. Aegolius, for the bats' and our last plan's convenience."

Then one of the elders asked, "Where is this 'Pillar of Supremacy'?" and Nyra replied, "It's to the far east corner of the Pure Ones' territory, in the middle of the _Hagfiends' Sea_, but it had been abandoned for years. I don't even believe that our old flying route is available."

LaRoche recovering from his shock then said, "Well, if this story is true, then what you want us to do about it?"

Kludd looked at the Elf Owl with bitterness and annoyance and said, "You're kidding, right? We came here to get reinforcements! I'm sure with your men's luck, we can defeat him!"

Barran looked at him with regret said, "I am afraid we cannot do that."

This prompted Kludd to look at the queen in disbelief and screeched, "Why not?! This owl is much of a threat to you as he is to us!"

"I know!" Barran replied, "...but as your general said..." she glared at Nyra, "No one had been to this 'Pillar of Supremacy' for years, and knowing this Skarmoris, he and the Pure Ones are getting the lay of the land, thus giving him, a deadly threat to us all, a homeland advantage." (**Can't argue with that logic, right? XD**)

The ex-king and queen were in total shock, as theirs only hope of getting their kingdom back was shattered to dust, and as soon as Kludd was about to say something, a voice spoke up, "Let us go!" Everyone in the room along with the new Metalbeak and Nyra look at Soren, the owner of the voice, who was standing tall while his friends looked surprised.

"You all heard me..." Soren continued, "If what Metalbeak said about his men betraying him is true..." Kludd wondered why Soren referred to him by Metalbeak, he never did the last few times he saw him, as he went forth, "That means if we can defeat Skarmoris, the Pure Ones, being spineless coward they are, will most certainly return to their previous leaders, thus solving all our problems!"

"Stay out of this, Soren! This doesn't concern you!" Kludd snarled, surprising Soren.

"Silence!" Boron bellowed at him, shutting him up.

Then LaRoche sniggered "That oughta be one of the stupidest ideas I have ever heard! You four..." he pointed at the band, who were returning glares at him, remembering what he did to Soren back at the festival, "...think you can pull off something that 'Metalbeak' and his lady friend failed to do?"

"Not just us four..." Soren simply said, and then he glanced over to Kludd and Nyra, "Since this is Metalbeak and Nyra's fight, we can expect that they will be going to this new 'hideout' and we hoped to accompany them."

Kludd was about to object to the idea when Boron beat him to it, saying, "As much as I like to agree to that plan, I can't risk you four being in the same company as them..." he glanced suspiciously at the Pure Ones."

Ezylryb, who had been silent since Soren's idea was mention, spoke up, "No need to worry about that, my king..." Everyone in the room glanced at him, "As I will also be accompanying the young ones on their quest." A few whispers ensued, but then the old Lyze of Keil said, "I doubt this is a debatable matter, everyone should know clear well that I had dealt with a lot of Pure Ones in the past, especially that woman..." He pointed at Nyra, who then gave a death glare back at him, "...and this journey will probably be no different."

Soren, Kludd, and Nyra were against the idea of him coming along; Kludd was against it since Soren and him were the last owls he would want helping him, Nyra wasn't for it since that owl was the same owl that hurt her mate all those times ago, and the last thing she want was to be forced to have her husband's killer, and his enemy in the same group. Soren, who was unexpectedly against it, simply didn't want him to come not because he would slow him down or something, it was because he still didn't know that the new Metalbeak was his brother, and was purely afraid of what his reaction would be.

Unfortunately for the three, Boron said, "Ok, Ezylryb, you shall accompany our four young heroes and the Pure Ones to '_Le Pilier de la Suprématie_' so we can put a stop to this new evil. When can I assume you will be leaving?" and the old Screech Owl said, "We will head out in an hour…"

Boron then said in a proud voice, "This meeting has been dismissed!" and soon, everyone left the room (except LaRoche, who was merely outraged by turns of events.)

Soren and his band, along with the two Pure Ones, walked out and as soon as everyone else was away from the vicinity, Kludd walked in front of his brother and said in a venomous tone, "Why did you interfere, Soren?!"

Soren, shocked by his brother's attitude, said in an angered voice, "Why? Do I need a reason why to help you?"

Kludd screeched, "Yes, considering that I came here for the help of the Guardians, not a head-in-the-clouds dreamer like you!"

Soren snarled, in a bitter tone, "Why are you being an ungrateful oaf, brother? You should be thankful that we are helping you!"

"Oh please, you of all owls were the last one that Nyra and I wanted to have helping, Mr. I Kill Metalbeak!" Kludd chuckled.

Soren was mortified that he think that he took pride in such things, and then he looked over to Nyra, who was giving him a venomous glare, and merely turned away, to avoid eye contact. He merely said, "I did what I had to do, but I didn't take pride in it!" and then he glared at Nyra and continued, "However, I feel I should have finish her as well, just to be done with the Pure Ones!" shocking Nyra.

Kludd was shocked and enraged (and slightly impressed, he hate to admit) by his brother's words, and he lunged at his brother, who was about to strike back as well, until Twilight got inbetween him saying, "Now, now, lads, now is not the time for fisticuffs!"

This angered Kludd even more as he screeched, "Don't you dare call me 'lad'; I prefer the title '_Metalbeak_'!"

Then Soren spat, "Oh, so you still hang on that title, even though your own men betrayed you? I still don't get why _she_..." he stole yet another glare at Nyra, while she turn her look of shock into utter hatred, "...is still with you, when she could be cuddling with this Skarmoris character."

This just pushed Kludd over the edge, as he let out a screech when a loud voice yelled, "SOREN! METALBEAK! That's enough!"

Both brothers looked over to the origin of that voice, which was Ezylryb, with a rather-peeved expression. He then continued, "This is not how we should start things! We have a mission to do and here you two are, squabbling like owlets! We're going to have travel with each others, so get used to each other, so that means no more fighting between you two, do I make myself clear?!"

Soren looked down with shame and said, "Yes sir, I am sorry."

Then Ezylryb look at Kludd, who was still giving him an evil glare, and repeated, "Do I make myself clear?"

Kludd then sighed and said, "Yes...sir."

Then the senior Guardian turned to the others and Nyra and said, "That goes for the rest of you, can I trust _all_ of you to not engage in any more fights with our two 'companions'?"

Soren's friends instantly nodded and said, "Yes sir" and Nyra merely gave an 'hmph'.

Somewhat satisfied with their answers, he continued on to say, "You three..." he pointed to Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight, "We going to be leaving come a hour's time, so I need you each of you to arm and prepare yourself, as well as these two..." he gestured to Kludd and Nyra, and then he turned to Soren and requested, "...As for you, lad, I would like you to come to my hollow real quick."

Gylfie and friends looked at Soren with a worried look, as they flew off, and Nyra merely gave another 'hmph' and follow the three, and Kludd, just gave a huff as he followed her to the armory. Soren, a bit nervous, then follow his hero back to his hollow...

As soon as they landed, Soren, feeling that his hero was still upset from earlier, tried to explain, "Look, sir, if you are still mad about the fight..."

But the Lyze of Keil interrupted "...I know, Soren."

Soren stopped when he heard the words, and was horrified that he could potentially be talking about what he think was talking about. He then tried to play dumb by saying, "Know what, sir?"

Ezylryb then chuckled and then looked at Soren with a glare, and merely ordered, "You know pretty _damn_ well what, that Metalbeak...is none other than your apparently 'deceased' brother. Do you think your hero is so stupid?"

Soren, shocked by his answer, scrambled to reply, "No, sir...it just...well he..." then he let out a long sigh and asked "How long did you knew?"

The older Guardian answered, "Ever since you first saw him as leader of the Pure Ones..."

Soren, even more shocked, asked, "You knew? All this time? How?!"

Ezylryb's stern expression lightened up a bit as he chuckled, "Well, my boy, when he had your friend Otulissa in his clutch, I heard him call you 'brother', and the way he said it sounded like more than a metaphor." Soren then looked at him in disbelief and he added, "That, and the fact that there's almost a resemblance between you and him." It was true; Kludd and Soren did almost look alike.

However, Soren remained silence when Ezylryb said, "I must know...why you tried to keep it a secret? From me, your lover, and especially your parents?" Soren still remained quiet, when the old owl said, "Did you honestly think anyone would think any less of you?" Soren, still quiet, turned around and sighed. Ezylryb, getting a little annoyed, raised his voice and said, "Well, aren't you going to said anything?!"

"WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY?! THAT I AM ASHAMED OF MY BROTHER?! THAT I REGRET EVER KILLING METALBEAK BECAUSE DOING SO GAVE KLUDD THE CHANCE TO BE METALBEAK?! THAT I HATE MYSELF EVERY SINGLE DAY FOR WHAT MY BROTHER HAD BECOME?! WAS THAT WHAT YOU WANTED?!" Soren screamed while turning around, letting out all his emotions in one fell swoop. Then Soren realized whom he was talking to, and then turns back around, and said, "I'm sorry, sir, you didn't deserve that..."

The grizzled owl sighs; He knew how hard Soren had been trying to cope with the situation he was in: having to live with the fact that his brother was his enemy, having to lie to his parents just to spare them the heartbreak, and having to deal with owls like LaRoche, who would discriminate against him had they found out that he was a brother to a Pure One...however...

Ezylryb grabbed Soren by his shoulders and gave him a firm look, and said, "Soren, I know you believe that you are doing the right thing...but you also know that you can't keep running from the truth. Your parents, your family, and the Guardians, will find out...they will understand, and those who don't, well, I just give them a thing or two about respecting others..." he finished chuckling, and that brought a smile to the sad, young guardian. Then he turned towards the exit, and said, "We should get ready for our journey, I doubt your brother and the _old lady_ would like to be kept waiting."

As he spread his wing, Soren said, "Could it wait?"

Ezylryb turned back to his protégé, and Soren continued, "Could I wait to tell everyone, after we return?"

The Screech Owl asked, "Sure, but...what would you doing that accomplishes?"

Soren answered valiantly "Because I need one more chance...one more chance to save my brother…"

Ezylryb looked at him with pity, but who knows, he might actually..."Of course, but promise me that regardless of what happens, you will tell everyone who Kludd is."

Soren gave a solemn nod and said, "I promise..." while giving his hero a hand-er-talonshake.

An hour later, everyone was gathered at the entrance, ready to send off their five heroes and the two Pure Ones (hoping that they never see them again). Boron and Barran walked up to the group and said "Heroes, Lyze, Metalbeak, Nyra, on the behalf of everyone in this tree, I would like to wish you good luck and a fair journey as you go off to face this newfound villain, and hope that you will all return safely."

LaRoche, who was just there, merely because he felt obligated, added, "Except the scarred-faced kid and the prissy lady."

This statement earned a few "THANK YOU!"' from a few owls, and a couple glares from others (Kludd and Nyra included), as the king said, "I would appreciate if you keep your beak shut..." LaRoche then zipped his beak...

Soon the other owls came to personally say good-bye; Madame Plonk and her chorus gave a song to say goodbye to Twilight as well as Mrs. P., who gave him a few words of encouragement, the children gave Digger an overwhelming hug (as they covered him), a few owls went and send their condolences to Gylfie, and for the others...

Ezylryb was giving his goodbyes to some of the elders and fellow Guardians when he saw Alice, his 'little' crush approach him. She said "Well, I guess the 'Lyze of Keil' will be flying off into battle once more, eh?"

The old owl blush a little when he replied "Well...you know my job is an occupational hazard..." (**How to Train Your Dragon Reference! XD**)

The old gal giggled as she then put a satchel over his head and said, "This is my personal satchel, loaded with some herbs and medications, should you have any need for it...but remember, it's my satchel and I will like it back." She finished with a joking stern voice, and then said "Please come back safely," As she gave him a hug and flew back to the infirmary, leaving Ezylryb lost for words, while earning a few 'looks' from Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight. When he noticed them, he gave him a 'don't think about it' glare, and that put an end to that...

As for Soren, his family and his girlfriend Otulissa were present. Otulissa gave her boyfriend a hug and a kiss and said, "Promise me Soren that you will come back."

Soren chuckled "Oh, Otulissa, you know I always do, we've been Guardians for over a year now, and this will probably be like any other mission."

However, Otulissa gave him a look of deep concern and said "This won't be, Soren! I heard from the others that this villain, Skarmoris, sound awful, and..." she gave the new Metalbeak a glare, who in turn, returned a smirk, as she remembered how he almost killed her, as she tried to save Soren, "...I don't trust him…nor her..." she moved her glare to Nyra, who was giving the others an impatient expression, "...just be careful around them." Then she gave him Soren a long kiss.

Kludd merely watched and said sarcastically, "Isn't that touching..." Otulissa quickly pulled away as she glared at him, as she remembered him saying that before threatening to snap her neck like a twig, Soren then gave an annoyed glare at him.

Noctus and Marella then came up to him, and the mother gave her son a strong motherly hug and started to cry a little, as Soren, struggling to breathe and get her off him, said, "Ma...choking...not breathing..." (**Lion King 1 1/2 reference! XD**)

Noctus then pulled her away saying, "Now dear, I know you loved our son very much but you know clear well that he has to do this."

Marella nodded while still sobbing, and then from behind her, emerged Eglantine, Soren and Kludd's little sister. Due to her youngness, she didn't usually understand what that was happening, but all she knows was that Soren and his friends as well as their childhood hero 'The Lyze of Keil' were going off on another Guardians' mission and…the two owls that were accompanying him.

The big white owl she remembered from when her brother Kludd took her to meet her...right before she, as Soren had called it, moon-blinked, and the other one she recognized...well recognized wasn't the right word, the word would be familiar, as the figure was wearing a helm similar to what her father and Soren described as Metalbeak's helm, but the owl, he looked much different from what Eazelly (that was Eglantine's nickname for Ezylryb, since she could not pronounce his name right, but the old owl was willing to amuse her by letting her call him that) had described.

The one he described was black as night and had a scary voice, as the one standing in front of him was light brown and his voice (as she heard him quipped on him hugging Ochy, her nickname for Otulissa) sounded rough yet somehow familiar.

She walked up to her brother and asked him, "Brother…is that owl...the one with the black helmet...is that M-Metal...?"

"No...er, well it is kinda like this, he is not the Metalbeak from the stories...think of him as a...different Metalbeak." He answered, thus clarifying things for his sister.

Then she gave him a hug, saying, "Please take care, Soren, I don't wanna lose another brother." (**Cue the ahhs**)

This tugged at Soren's heartstring hearing this, and whispered to her, "Don't worry, Eg, I will be back..." then he said with a smile, "Besides, who else will I have tell our story?" putting a smile on her face.

The parents then hugged him along with Eglantine again, thus creating a wonderful sight for Ezylryb, who was watching them with a smile, and then he turned to Kludd, who had a look about him. It wasn't a look of hate or malice, but a look of longing, and hurt.

This caused the old owl to ponder his original opinion of him, "_Hmmm, for one who abandoned everything for the Pure Ones, he seems to have a bit of sadness within him, maybe he..._"

Before he finished the thought, Nyra, who was growing impatient, said, "Will we be heading out soon? I am not one for long goodbyes, especially if you are not receiving them."

The Screech Owl replied, "Come on, woman; stop pretending as if you don't have a heart. Surely there was one time where you had a sorrowful goodbye." Nyra was about to answer when she actually remembered a moment, but then she shook it off, and just look away and turn to Kludd, who was sharing her lack of patience.

Kludd, who finished witnessing the scene of his family saying goodbye to his little brother, started to have a vicious pang in his heart, which he hadn't felt since his fight with Soren when he first became Metalbeak, when Soren said, "_What about ma and da? I haven't told them, you know. About what you have done. Because it would break their hearts. They'd be ashamed of you, Kludd._" Remembering such words made his heart ache more, as he closed his eyes, trying to prevent any moisture from coming through.

Then he heard his name, well, his new name at least. "Metalbeak?"

Kludd open his eyes to see his father, Noctus, looking at him eye to eye, with a stern look.

The young Barn Owl looked at him, and asked, "What is it?"

Noctus then said, "I know who you are...I know what you had done...and if it weren't for this mission..." he paused.

Kludd looked at him, mystified, and he thought, "_Did Soren actually?_" He then looked over to Soren, who was giving him a blank expression.

Then Noctus continued, "You may be the new king, but I never forgive you for what you people did to my eldest son, Kludd..."

This suddenly cleared things for Kludd, "_So, he still didn't tell them..._"

Noctus finished "...but I am entrusting you and that woman with my son's life, so don't you dare break that trust." He said that last part in a threatening tone.

Then as he walked back, he noticed Eglantine walking a bit towards her, and quickly put his talon in front, "No, Eglantine, it's not safe around him."

The little owlet asked, "Could I please say one thing, please?" She started to give him cute puppy dog eyes, which Kludd fondly remembered from back home in the Forest Kingdom of Tyto, and then he found it weird that he 'fondly' remembers it.

The father Barn Owl let out a sigh, as she addressed the Pure One, "Uh...Mr. Metalbeak?"

Snapping out of his thoughts, Kludd asked, in a quiet tone, "What is it, kid?"

Eglantine then asked in a sad yet cute tone, "Please look after my big brother, I don't want to lose another one," This send a wicked punch into Kludd's gizzard as he heard those innocent words, and felt a bit of guilt when he watched Noctus and his sister return to Marella, who was still sobbing.

Kludd then thought, "_They must really miss me...what are you thinking, Kludd? These are the same people that chose your younger brother over you! And besides, your family is the Pure Ones, and being with Nyra...eventually._"

As he just shook the thought, Soren flew over to him and said, "Well, we're just about ready to go."

"About time, I thought this sobfest would never end," Kludd said in a false arrogant tone, but Soren saw through it, and he said "Come on, Kludd, no need to pretend you don't care, there has to be..."

"I am going to stop you there, Soren. First off, I am _Metalbeak_, whether you, your friends, or your _hero _(**Yes, Ezylryb did tell him that he knows**) like it or not, and secondly, the Pure Ones are my family, and I am going to give them a piece of my mind once they are back under my control!" He said with a fierce tone.

Soren, slightly disappointed, then asked, "Very well...anyway, how _did _you find Ga'Hoole, especially through that storm?"

Kludd, annoyed with all the questions he had been asked since he got here, pondered whether to tell him of the owl he had seen a lot of in the past few hours, or to lie. Knowing that his brother wouldn't believe him if he lied anyway, he just said, "Well, I had a bit of help from a snowy owl called Samuel."

This instantly caused Soren to stiff as he heard the name, he did remember that Samuel said he was acquainted with his brother, and his brother saying his name confirmed this.

Soren was about to ask him more, when Digger screeches to him, "HEY SOREN, METALBEAK! WE'RE READY TO GO!"

Soren, frustrated with the interruption, said, "Well, we better not keep the others waiting..." as he and Kludd, slightly confused with his brother's reaction to his answer, went to the others...

The seven owls were ready to set off, as they went into formation, and Ezylryb sounded off, "Wings?"

The owls spread their wings and Gylfie shouted, "Check!"

"Talons?" Ezylryb had said next.

Everyone moved their talons into positions and Soren shouted, "Check!"

"Tailfeathers?" Ezylryb asked.

Then everyone looked back at their tailfeathers and Digger said, "Check! And actually...not bad!" (**Rio reference! XD**)

This prompted a few groans from the others, when Nyra said, "Can't we just take off?! Honestly, the Pure Ones never took this long before going into flight!"

Taking heed of Nyra's impatience (although not being happy about it), Ezylryb said, "Okay, Guardians...Pure Ones, to the sky!" then he, Soren, Kludd, Nyra, Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight flapped their wings and flew into the sky, and off into the horizon as the owls of the tree cheered them on.

Eglantine, who was standing between her parents said to herself, "Be careful, brother..."

Meanwhile, perched one of the tree's branches, viewing the events, a masked Pure One watched with keen eyes, and said "Skarmoris is gonna want to hear about this..." As he flew off into the sky.

Three hours later, as the beautiful scenery of the forests and seas faded into craggy peaks and dead, barren wastelands, he approaches the '_Le Pilier de la Suprématie_', a giant, thick, tower-like spire that stood tall in the middle of a raging sea, and with a deep fog shrouding around it, as a storm brewed over the top. Soon, he arrived at a gate located in the middle of the tall rock, and let out a screech, signaling that he was a Pure One, thus opening the door as he continued in.

The first room inside the spire was gigantic and served as the training grounds for the Pure Ones, with a giant hole in the far end of the room so the Pure Ones could get practice in aerial battling. There were sounds of Pure Ones fighting and screeching, as well as sound of metal colliding...however, this wasn't the owl's destination, as he went into a nearby tunnel, which winded upwards to near the top, where many of the elite Pure Ones, Skarmoris, included, resided.

He entered the chamber, which was smaller than the first, but was still pretty big, and a few more Pure Ones, stronger than the ones down at the training ground, were busy practicing as well, as the scout approached two big doors that led into their new King's chamber.

As he approached it, there was a swoop as three certain owls swooped in, it was Kludd's former lieutenant, now general Nix followed by Jatt and Jutt, who were both promoted to Lieutenants, due to Skarmoris being simply amused by their antics. The general screeched, "State your reason to disturb our king!"

The scout then said, not intimidated by his superior's glare and said "I have new information, them concerning the new Metalbeak… for Skarmoris to hear only..."

Nix, a bit angered by the scout's smugness and the slightest mention of his ex-leader then gave a nod to Jatt and Jutt, who then bumbled around, as they pulled the doors open, and Nix said "Proceed..."

The Pure One then flew into the King's chamber, a big circular chamber, with columns spread evenly with openings in between and an expertly painted insignia of the Pure Ones in the middle of the floor (**think of this room as a boss fight area**). At the end of the room, watching the waves of the _Hagsfiends' Sea_ crashed against each other, perched the new king Lord Skarmoris, and at his sides, his two loyal men, Biggs and Wedge watching the scout approached them.

The young owl landed on the ground before them, and bowed, "My liege...I have information regarding Metalbeak and the queen...they had found Ga'Hoole, and they were able to enlist the help of the ones who lead the original Metalbeak to his demise, including the famous Lyze of Keil...and they are coming here..."

Then the Sulawesi Masked Owl merely chuckled and said, without turning to face him, "Good...looks like our young wanna-be king Kludd is coming for a visit...and better yet, he's bringing the one who had formed Metalbeak into the owl he had become...Things just got more interesting..."

The scout, slightly disturbed that his lord wasn't perturbed by such news, asked, "What is your plan of action, milord?"

The king then said, "Nothing, we go about business as we usually do, just have our men ready to receive them when they arrived...you are dismissed."

The young Pure One bowed, as he left the chamber, and Skarmoris thought, "_Well, Kludd, you want your throne back? Then come and get me..._"

* * *

**A/N: I take back what I said about the last chapter, this one was purely hell! This took over the course of four days to finally complete this chapter, and I really hope that this chapter was good enough. A lot of things had happen in this chapter like the one before: first, we picked up where we left off after Kludd and Soren 'crash' in, then there is a meeting where Kludd and Nyra explain their plight to the Parliament, with quips from our feathery nuisance LaRoche, and Soren and co. volunteered to help them out, then there is tension between Soren and Kludd, and a scene between Soren and Ezylryb, where the old owl reveals to have known about Metalbeak for quite a while, and then there is a long goodbye scene, and then our heroes begin their adventure, and finally, we see our old friend Skarmoris as well as some well-known Pure Ones. I also introduce another minor OC, known as Pip, which purpose was just to act as a comic relief and to help confirm our two favorite Pure Ones' story. Also, I made up a new place in this chapter known as '_Le Pilier de la Suprématie_', which is '_The Pillar of Supremacy_' in French, and that marks the first time I tried to describe a place, which in my opinion, was pretty hard! I sure hope I did OK in keeping everyone in character, although some people make be offset by Soren's anger in his little spat with Kludd when he threaten Nyra, but I was just trying to show how bad Soren felt about what had become of his brother. I sure hope that you guys like this chapter, and hopefully the next chapter will be much shorter...READ AND REVIEW!**

**_Artworks stuff is appreciated_**


	8. The Band and The Echidna

**A/N: Okay, readers, we are ready to tackle chapter eight, which is merely a filler chapter at least, where we will see a certain eccentric character from the movie, as more of the evil Lord Skarmoris, and in this chapter, since our last one had little to no humor in it, there will be some here. So as they sang in the new 'Winnie the Pooh' (with my adjustment) "here is my new chapter, ENJOY!"**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**Bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mention.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, and LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl**

**NOTICE: In my reviews and my pms, readers Crazybird101 and Vegeta12345 brought up two important points regarding the characters of the movie. Crazybird101 said that the original Metalbeak's name was Surtr, is that actually canon and true? Vegeta12345 said that Otulissa is a short-eared owl in the movie, while other sources said that she is a spotted owl, can anyone clarify on that? Feel free to weigh in on that with your reviews please.**

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Chapter Eight: The Band and the Echidna

During the three hours the scout took to report to Skarmoris, the group, consisting of Soren, Kludd, Nyra, Gylfie, Digger, Twilight, and the senior Guardian Ezylryb, were busy flying through the now tranquil Sea of Hoolemere.

Kludd took note of these waters and asked the old Lyze of Keil "Hey, old owl! Are these waters usually temperamental?"

Ezylryb gave the young Barn Owl a glare and said "Well, _boy_, these seas had been rumored to shift between calm and raging in matters of hours, and I preferred to be addressed as _Ezylryb_."

Kludd merely ignored him as the others were flying silence for a few more minutes, when Digger asked "So…how far you think it is to this Le Piller de la Supermatey, Kludd?".

This immediately prompted the Pure One ex-king to turn around (stopping the group) and said "First off, it's 'Le Pilier de la Suprématie', and…" he looked at everyone else "Let's get one thing straight, I no longer go by Kludd, my name is _Metalbeak_!"

Digger then said "Well we can't call you that…"

"Why not?" Kludd asked in an annoyed tone.

Digger replied, "There was already a Metalbeak, and it would cause everyone to wonder if we referring to him or you."

Kludd groaned and said "Because, I am the only Metalbeak around, and I doubt we would be talking a lot about our old king!"

Digger then said "How about Metalbeak Two? That way, we can still call you Metalbeak and no one can get confused…"

Kludd then gave a 'Is he serious?' look to Soren and his friends, and they all gave a shrug, and then said in an angry voice "No, you shall address me as _Metalbeak_, not 'Kludd', not 'Metalbeak Two', just sprinking _Metalbeak_, is that clear?!"

The Burrowing Owl look at him with a pout and said "Well excuse me, Mr. Grumpy Beak, for trying to be helpful,"

The new Metalbeak was about to scold him when Soren said "It doesn't matter, oh 'Metalbeak', it won't get us anywhere to arguing about it."

With a sigh, Kludd and the group continued onwards, when Digger said "Who's up for a joke?"

Nyra said with distaste. "Jokes don't amuse me…"

Digger then chuckled saying "Then you probably hadn't heard mine yet…" he then cleared his throat and said "What is the different between a clean owl and a…", then he stop as he realized the company he was with.

Kludd, who was listening to his banter, asked "Well, a clean owl and…?"

Nyra, slightly catching on to what was the missing part, "You weren't about to said Pure One, were you?" She asked with a narrowing glare.

"Of-of course not, I sim-simply forgot how that joke went…" He stuttered hoping to not get on their nerves anymore than he probably had, and then he said, "OK, here's a different one, what you do get when you cross a Guardian and a…" he droned on the last part, realizing that joke was also making fun of the Pure Ones.

"Honestly, you make insulting jokes about us daily?" Nyra asked, in a peeved tone, as Digger struggled to come up with a better joke, as he then thought up one of his personal favorite…

"Ok, here's one that isn't Pure Ones-related, knock-knock?" Digger begin his joke.

"Knock-knock? What kind of joke is that?" Nyra asked, confused by his choice of words.

"No, silly, you suppose to say 'who's there'?" Digger replied.

Nyra, pouting from being called silly, then looked over to Kludd, who gave a 'just go with it' look, and sighed, asking "who's there?"

"Owls." Digger continued with his joke.

"What?" Nyra said, confused with the answer, "How's that suppose to be funny?"

Digger sighed, and asked "You never heard jokes back when you were an owlet, did you?"

Nyra, about to answer him, just stopped, as she did when Ezylryb ask her if she ever had a sorrowful goodbye, but then said "No, I did not, but I doubt the joke would have been amusing."

Twilight, after hearing his friend's attempt to tell a joke to the once-queen of the Pure Ones, and how bad he was failing, thought of a way to lighten up the mood…

"Well, if a joke doesn't fancy you, I know what will…" Twilight said in a proud voice, prompting Nyra to stare at him, "A melodious ballad from yours truly…" as he pulled his lute and strumming it as he started to sing "_In the sky again, just can't wait to get into the sky again…_"

This prompted a pained screech from both Nyra and Kludd, as well as Digger and Ezylryb and flinches from Soren and Gylfie, as they heard his bad strumming, and Kludd screamed "STOP PLAYING THAT SOUND OF THE HAGSFIENDS!"

"Sound of the?…" Twilight sputtered, stopping his playing, "I have you know that this song was a classic for adventurers who were about to venture into the great unknown."

"Well with a sound like that, it is no wonder half those adventurers never came back." Kludd quipped dryly.

Twilight gave a 'hmph' and said "Well, maybe your taste-lacking tongue would like this tune…"

Then he started playing again, which caused everyone to flinch in pain again, and Kludd thought to himself "_This is going to be a long flight…_"

* * *

It wasn't long till the band had come across the shrine, the gateway to the Sea of Hoolemere and eventually, Ga'Hoole, it was also home to a certain friend of theirs. The seven landed, however, Kludd was confused as to why they did so.

"Uh, brother...why did we stop on this hunk of rock?" Kludd asked, baffled by the significance of the spire they stand on.

"Well, Klu-Metalbeak…" Soren caught himself before uttering his real name, "This is a shrine, the halfway point when we were on our way to Ga'Hoole. It is also home to one of our friends."

"And that would be?" Nyra asked, raising her left brow.

"Why me, of course…" said a familiar voice.

This caused Kludd and Nyra to jump, as they turned around to see a echidna standing behind them, with a familiar grin that reminded Kludd of someone, "_Now doesn't that know-it-all smirk look familiar._"

Soren greeted the sagely echidna "Echidna! Long time no see!" as he hugged him.

"Oh, it been foretold that you would said that!" Echidna said with a smirk.

" [sighs] Here we go again…" Gylfie said flatly, when they first met, Gylfie had been very doubtful of the echidna's ability to see the future, as he would say 'it been foretold' after the fact.

"Nice to see you again as well, doubter, it was foretold that you would say that" Echidna said dryly to the young Elf Owl.

Then Nyra, a bit weirded out by the creature, inched over to Twilight, and whispered "So…what is with this peculiar creature?"

Twilight chuckled "Well, Nyra, this creature is known as Echidna, a wise hermit who watches over the shrine, giving advice to wayward travelers with his ability to gaze into the future."

Nyra was somewhat amused by this and then approached the echidna, "So you can foretell the future?" she asked.

"Indeed, milady, it was foretold that you would ask me such a thing." The echidna said.

"Oh, really?" Kludd enquired, not willing to buy this echidna's ability. He may have been proven wrong before, but there was certainly no way that this echidna could possess the same power Samuel did, and he was going to prove it. "Oh, really? If that is so, then tell me, did you know that an owl was going to take control of the Pure Ones? That I would have to turn to the bloody Guardians?"

Soren stared at him in disbelief and scolded "Kludd, you shouldn't question him; he is wiser than he let on…"

The echidna then said "It is alright, my boy, it was foretold that the usurped king would test me with such a question…" This frustrated Kludd a bit, "but… it was indeed foretold that a owl by the name of Skarmoris and his lackeys Biggs and Wedge would come to your kingdom, to claim what he believed was rightfully his, and that the king's lieutenant and his soldiers would betray him, forcing the king and queen to flee and seek the help of the guardians. It was also foretold that a band of seven consisting of a Hero…" he looked to Ezylryb, who was amused by his ability, "a Warrior and bard…" he turned to Twilight, "a Tracker…" he glanced at Digger, "a Navigator and a doubter of things she cannot explain…" he stared at Gylfie, who was a bit shocked by his 'foretelling', "A Queen…" he looked at Nyra, who was equally as shocked. "And finally two Brothers, both from different sides on the path of life would come here, as the first stop on their journey to defeat this powerful darkness." as he finished his speech, he looked upon both Soren and Kludd, who the latter was dumbfounded by all that he said.

Then the echidna said "Well…did that convince you?", as he stared at Kludd.

The Barn Owl open his beak to say something, but nothing came out, and then Soren said "I told you not to question his abilities…"

Kludd's expression then turned sour when he realized that he was proven wrong, for the second time that night, and then screeched "Well? Aren't we going to go?! We're wasting moonlight sitting here hearing about stuff that already happened!"

Digger then asked "Metalbeak, I don't mean to be a downer, but which way exactly are we going?"

Nyra answered for him "Well, it's simple, my simple-minded companion…" This earned a pout from him, "if we continue along our usual route to St. Aegolius and then cut through Talon's Breach, we should be there in two hours time."

"Oh…I'm afraid your journey is not that easy." The echidna said with a frown.

"Excuse me?" Nyra asked, bewildered.

"This leader, Skarmoris, will be expecting you to go through there, and had posted nearly a quarter of his army along Talon's Breach. Taking that route will surely result in the failure of your quest, and doomed all of the owls' kingdoms…"

Kludd, slightly perturbed by what he said, then asked in a frustrated tone "Then what do you suggest we do, 'oh great one'?"

The echidna, not at all affected by the Pure One's sarcasm, went off somewhere, not before saying he would be right back, and left the owls for a few moments before returning again with a scroll.

"This here…" The sage pointed to the scroll, as he unfurled it to show a map "is a map of the entire Pure Ones' territory." This prompted Kludd and Nyra to almost ask how he came across one, before he spoke again "As you see, if you go about the road you are taking, you will be ambushed by a plethora of Pure Ones, and most likely perished," as he traced a path from their current location to the Pillar of Supremacy, which was mostly a straight line. The owls gave each other nervous glances, as Kludd rolled his eyes at this hermit's warning.

"However…" Echidna continued, as he then took out an ink bottle with a quill, pull the quill and placed the tip on the map, "If you venture through the Poison Briar Bog, traverse the Hawk's Ravine, and navigate the Labyrinth Peaks…" he drew a line, more like a curve that cut through drawings of a bog, a ravine, and menacing peaks that eventually led to the same spot, "you shall reach the Pillar and our beloved kingdoms will have a chance of surviving!" He finished with a happy tone.

However, this earned a peeved-off screech from Kludd, "WHAT! YOU ASKING US TO TAKE A POSSIBLY THREE NIGHTS DETOUR THROUGH THE DEADLIEST PARTS OF THE TERRITORY INSTEAD OF A TWO HOUR SIMPLE FLIGHT, ALL BECAUSE YOU THINK THERE'S GOING TO BE…"

The echidna hit him with his staff and said, in a stern tone "I don't think! I know! You should know this by now, as someone had told you before!"

This shut Kludd up, as he thought "_How does he know about Samuel? They couldn't possibly be in cahoots…_"

The Echidna then said, calming down "Trust me, young one, I wouldn't send you down that way if I have any doubt that you would prevail. It been foretold that the band of heroes would prevail over these trials, and will have the strength, the smarts, and the courage (**Winnie the Pooh's Grand Adventure reference!**) to defeat him and restore peace!"

Kludd mulled over what he had said, and then, in a determined voice, "Fine, if it was foretold, then I suppose we will venture that way."

"That's the spirit! Kludd…" Soren said, before Kludd said, back in his bitter voice "_Metalbeak._" Soren then sighed as he was still correcting everyone who said his name.

"Well, wise one, thank you for your timely wisdom, it had helped us a lot." Ezylryb thanked the old creature as he then turned to everyone, "Guardians…Pure Ones, back to the sky we fly!" With a flap of the wings, he, followed by Digger and Twilight, then Gylfie and Nyra (still baffled by the eccentric creature) and Soren and Kludd, who looked back as they head off in a different direction than before.

Soren then said "Thank you, Echidna; I hope we will see you again soon!"

Echidna then yelled back "Of course, it had been foretold! And remember, if you had flown as hard as you can, your wings' weak and your spirits' done, YOU'RE HALFWAY THERE!"

Nyra, who overheard the creature, asked Digger "What did he say?"

Digger said cheerfully "WE'RE HALFWAY THERE!" misinterpreting the part of the echidna's words. Gylfie then asked "Didn't you said that last time when he said that?" Digger gave her a shrug as they all flew into the distance.

Meanwhile, back with the Echidna, seeing the owls were out of sight, was about to return to his home when he heard someone landing, and said, without turning, "It is nice to see you again, Samuel."

Indeed, it was Samuel, as he said "Well, I take it that you send our friends on their way?"

Echidna replied "Yes, however…do you truly believe they can survive those obstacles? I was just going off what you had told me earlier." He finished with a worried glance.

The old snowy owl chuckled as he said "Don't worry, my starsight had never failed me before, and your abilities are up to par as mine."

The echidna, a little relieved by his words then said "What about…them? The two brothers? Do you think that Soren's dreams could possibly…?"

"Yes, Soren has…the power of the starsight, although it isn't as effective as many others yet, so we cannot know for sure if his dreams of Kludd and him together will come to fruition…" Then he turned to the moon, as it was slowly moving towards the horizon, signaling that it was a few hours till morning, and said "Only time will tell…"

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the Pillar of Supremacy, Skarmoris was standing before all his men (both elite and non-elite) as he was stood upon his iron perch, with banners of the Pure Ones hanging on each side. On both side of his perch, two more perches stand, where his two soldiers, Biggs and Wedge stood, and to the left of Biggs and to the right of Wedge, stood General Nix, and Lieutenants Jatt and Jutt (who were having trouble standing on their perch), as these perches all stood tall before the subjects in the training grounds.

"Soldiers!" Skarmoris bellowed as he began his speech, "As you all may know, we will be making our attack on those accursed Guardians within a few days, as well as expecting a certain someone to come here. Sure, some of you were merely workers under the reign of Metalbeak, while some of you were warriors, however, to me, you all are weak. That is why I am instigating a new training method!" Everyone were looking at each other with worry as he continued, "In my army, there is only room for the strongest, so all of you will fight each other to the death, and when only a hundred of you are left standing, then we will stop."

This prompted a few WHAT?!'s from a few soldiers and one spoke up, "But master! You are asking us to kill each…"

This thought was stop when one of the Pure Ones stabbed him in the heart, instantly killing him, and that one said, with a bit of insanity in his voice "He said, room for only the strongest…"

With that, all the Pure Ones started to turn on each other, as they fought with each other to the death, and soon blood-curdling screeches of pain and death echoed through the room and the smell of blood and death began to permeate throughout the room, as Skarmoris chuckled and said to his general and lieutenants, "Now, aren't you glad that I favored you all above them?".

Nix, who a few weeks ago, would have been mortified by this, was watching with awe as he saw owl kill owl, as something changed within him, making him into a purely heartless being. However, Jatt and Jutt were both watching in horror as they saw all their comrades getting killed, as they tried to refrain from watching and retching. They all shook yes to Skarmoris's question as he then chuckled as he thought "_Well, Father, behold as I am going to be supreme ruler of this world, something that you had fail to do ever so long ago. I'll make you wish you hadn't abandoned me…_"

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**A/N: Well, an attempt of making humor in this chapter was somewhat a success, only to be thwarted by the gruesome scene in the end; do you guys think I should bump the ratings up to a T because of that part? Well, I enjoyed making this chapter, as we had Digger trying to tell Nyra a joke, and failed miserably, as well as having Twilight play a little music, which also failed, as well as seeing the good ol' Echidna, who send them on a completely different path, which will be a major part of this story, as they try to overcome these obstacles. After they leave, we see our old friend Samuel again, who happens to be friend with the hermit, as they revealed a secret about Soren, and as you see in the end, we see Skarmoris again, and learned a little about his backstory. Here's a few clarifications though to help get rid of any confusion: First off, Soren having starsight was based off something I had read about him in a wikia, where they said he had it, so I made a story around that. The song Twilight was singing was a spoof of "On The Road Again" by Willie Nelson. What the echidna had said "…have the strength, the smarts, and the courage…" is based off Christopher Robin's saying in 'Winnie The Pooh Grand Adventure: The Search For Christopher Robin' "You are stronger than you seem, smarter than you think, and braver than you believe." Although there isn't going to be a point where three owls will have to prove that like in the movie. The goodbye by Echidna was based off the original movie, as well as Digger's misinterpretation. Finally, as for Skarmoris's father, you hadn't heard or seen him yet, but you will soon enough. Well, READ AND REVIEW!**

**_Artworks stuff are appreciated_**


	9. The Band and The Bog

**A/N: Well, folks, here we will come to the first obstacle that our heroes will face, and just so we are clear, don't ask "Why don't they just fly over it?" in the review as I will explain why in this chapter. Well, let get this chapter started…**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**Bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mention.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, and LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl**

**NOTICE: Since everyone in the reviews had been saying so, I fix it to where Otulissa is called a Short-Eared Owl.**

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Chapter Nine: The Band and the Bog

Our seven heroes had left the Echidna an hour ago on their path that would avoid detection by the Pure Ones, as they flew onwards to the first hurdle on their path to Skarmoris, the Poison Briar Bog…

Digger, then asked Kludd "So…Metalbeak, what do you know about the Poison Breary Bog?"

Kludd sighed as he corrected "Poison _Briar _Bog, and not much I'm afraid, Nyra told me that she used to train some of our soldiers here, before they started getting themselves killed."

"Killed?" Gylfie screeched, as she gulped at the notion, and Nyra nodded "Indeed, the bog was fraught with so many danger that Metalbeak, my Metalbeak, had us no longer train here."

"Why is the bog called Poison Briar Bog?" Soren asked, slightly frightened by what he was hearing.

"Why don't you see for yourself?" Ezylryb said, as they stopped at a side of a tall mountain (**too high to fly over, btw**). At one of the cliffs, there were dead trees with thorns and such growing all over the top as an eerie mist emitted from the entrance.

"Oh dear, you are telling me that we have to go through that?!" Twilight asked, he was usually the bravest out of the four, but even the bog was having effect on his bravery.

"Well, we can't fly over it, and there's no way around, so I suppose forward is our only way through." Nyra said, a little less scared than Twilight.

"Nyra is right, it will do no one any good if we backed out now. The sooner we get through here, the better." Ezylryb said.

However, no one moved, as Kludd rolled his eyes and said "Fine…if no one going to make the first step, I guess it will be me." He started to walk into the forest, as Soren, not willing to let his brother go alone, followed suit, then Nyra, not trusting Soren around her Kludd, followed him, and Ezylryb came not trusting Nyra and Kludd, and the others just came so that they can look after them.

As soon as they stepped in between the trees, everything around them grew darker than it already was, and they could barely see in front of them, and the mist that surrounded them didn't help at all.

"Oh boy, it is thick as pea soup in here," Twilight said, "Heh, that's new material for you, isn't it Digger?" He said, unknowingly to Kludd.

"Uh, I'm Metalbeak." Kludd awkwardly answered Twilight, thus embarrassing the Great Gray Owl.

Digger was looking around while feeling for a wing, when he finally felt one, "Don't worry, Gylfie, if you are feeling scared, just remember, I will hold your wing."

"Would you please take your dirty wing off me?" Nyra asked, in a disgusted tone, as Digger was holding her wing.

"Who has his wing on Nyra?!" Kludd asked in a peeved tone, as he turned around to claw at someone.

"Not me! Kludd" Soren yelled while dodging his claw swipe.

"_Metalbeak_!" He corrected.

He swung his claw at Gylfie, thinking it was Soren, prompting to screech "I didn't call you that, Metalbeak!"

Ezylryb, who was listening to the entire conversation, then said "This madness ends now!" Then he broke off a nearby limb, and pulled out of Alice's satchel a flint, and after a few strikes, the limb was alit.

The mist around them dissipated a little and everyone were able to recognize each other, and Digger said "Well, that 'shed a light on the subject!' (**Cue joke drum roll**)

With the torch in his beak, Ezylryb said, his speech muffled by the stick he was holfing, "Rell, row rat rout of way, shall re continue?" Everyone gave him a nod as they continue through the misty dark bog, as everyone stick close to each other (well Soren and the others did, Kludd and Nyra kept a little distance from them as well from Ezylryb, as their old leader had perished because of a burning branch.) with Ezylryb lighting the way.

As they did, sounds started to emit out of nowhere, such as hisses, screeches (different from an owl), and for some weird reasons, they heard someone whistling and someone saying "beware…" repeatedly.

This prompted Gylfie to sarcastically say "Well, cheery place isn't it?"

All the sudden, Ezylryb stopped in his tracks.

"Why did you stop?" Kludd asked, a bit confused and annoyed.

"Rare reems to be rutter in ront of rus, but rit's rall black…" Ezylryb said, with a bit of uncertainly, as he held his the torch close to what seems to be water...

Twilight asked, "So why don't we fly over it?"

"That would be a foolhardy decision! See those low-hanging briars?" Nyra replied, pointing out the vines with thorns upon them. "Those thorns are poisonous, if you prick yourself on them, the venom on the thorn's skin could result in death. Trust me, I seen it happen to twenty three of my men while training them. So therefore, flying is out of the question."

Soren then stepped up and put his left talon in the black water and pulled it out, leaving it all slimy with some black stuff, but okay nonetheless. "It seems fine, but one of us should go in to test it."

Everyone stared at each other, and Ezylryb said "Not re, I rholding the right."

Everyone remained silent, prompting Nyra to yell "This is unbelievable, you birds have the gall to attack us every time we caused a little problem, yet all of you are unwilling to step into this gunk?"

"Well if you are so Ms. Confidence, why don't you or Kludd go in?" Gylfie asked, defending her friends.

This caused Nyra to droop a bit, but she kept her dignity up saying "I would, except the gunk would take forever to preen out of my feathers, and I will not have gunk on my late husband and my king's helm." As he gestured the helm, as Kludd tried to speak but Gylfie beated him to it.

"Wait, let me get this straight, you and Kludd won't step in, because you don't want to get yourself or the helm of your dead mate dirty, am I hearing you right?" Gylfie asked in an annoyed tone.

"Yes…" Nyra said, as she turned around, "I am sure one of you boys could step in and…" before she could finish the sentence, the Elf Owl suddenly shoved her in the water, prompting a screech.

"There! Thank you for volunteering!" Gylfie sarcastically said with a smug smirk.

"NYRA!" Kludd yelled, as he looked into the black bog, then he turned to Gylfie with blood red eyes (**you know, like in the movie?**) and screeched at the small owl, who was now frigthened "I going to rip you to shreds you…"

Then the white Barn Owl burst out of the bog, sputtering, as she shook the gunk out of her eyes and then glared at the Elf Owl with equally red eyes, as she screamed "YOU GOING TO PAY FOR THAT YOU WORTHLESS LITTLE URCHIN!" as she was about to lunge out of the water at her.

Then Digger stepped in front and said with as much bravery he could muster "Don't hurt her, you mean lady!"

Then Soren said "Look, it doesn't matter, it is safe for us to wade through the stuff." He then inched himself into the bog as it went nearly up to his midsection.

Kludd, calming down from Gylfie's actions, said as he stepped into the water "For once, brother is right, although I am still furious with your friend's audacity," he glared at Gylfie. "I am willing to let it slide, since it hurt no one. Besides, I heard somewhere that this stuff is good for the feathers, so it's a win-win."

Nyra, upon hearing that, gave a sigh, as she gave the young navigator a quick glare before wading over to Kludd's side and said "If you said so, Kludd."

"WHAT! She gets to call you that, while all of us have to call you Metalbeak?" Digger squawked, as he hops into the bog with them. Kludd gave a smug nod, and this prompted him to say "Aw, _Kludd_" (**I came up with this first!**)

"Did you just say my name instead of 'crud'?" The new Metalbeak asked, with his left eye twitching.

"Yeah, it's not like you're using it, _Metalbeaky_!" Digger said with a smug face.

Before Kludd could yell at him for it, Ezylryb stepped in between them, keeping the torch above the bog, saying "Roesn't ratter, ru not rusing it, so rit's rare gain."

Kludd, angry with the Burrowing Owl's victory, then turn to Gylfie, and asked "How short-stuff going to get across this stuff? It is up to mine and Soren's midsection, so she can't wade across like us."

Digger, seeing the opportunity to get close with Gylfie, started shouting "I'LL DO IT! I'LL DO IT! I CAN FERRY HER A…" He tripped and fell into the gunk, and quickly sputtered the stuff out.

"I'm sorry, lad, I think it would be in her best interest if she had someone less…clumsy transporting her, so I will help her across." Twilight said, as he stepped into the bog.

"Thanks for the offer, though." Gylfie thanked Digger, as she hopped on the Great Gray Owl's head, as Digger sighed as he sank into the stuff again…and quickly rise up out of it.

Soon, they were back on their way again, as Ezylryb lighted the way while keeping the torch out of the bog, as sounds of talons moving in glaux-knows-what, however, unbeknownst to them, something else was in the bog with them…

Kludd, who was right behind Ezylryb, was busy keeping vigilance on anything that might leap out at them, when he felt something on his back. He quickly 'about-face' to see Digger, jumping from him. Annoyed, he spat "What are you doing, you fool?"

"Sorry, whenever I'm somewhere spooky, I have the tendency to grab onto the nearest thing." Digger muttered in a scared tone.

"Well, keep those _damn_ tendencies to a minimum; I already had it up to here with your shenanigans! So go cling onto someone else!" Kludd snarled, as he return to heading forward.

A few minutes later, he felt something again and then muttered "I warned you, you idiotic buf…" he turned around, ready to claw Digger, when he saw that Digger was next to Soren, looking at him with a confused look, "…foon?" Kludd finished with a mystified tone.

All of sudden, Nyra felt something slithered around her tailfeathers and let out a screech and shouted "Who dared touch me there?", as she glared at Soren who was closest to her.

"If you are implying I would touch you, of all owls, you are sadly mistaken" Soren said in a defensive tone, and soon Ezylryb, who turned around when he didn't hear footsteps.

He then felt something around his legs and nearly dropped his torch when he said, "Roo rouching roo?"

Twilight, feeling that the tension was getting the best of anyone, then said, "Look everyone, calm down, I am sure that a little music will calm everyone's nerve…" As he pulled out his lute and was about to play, Kludd quickly waded over to him and smacked his lute into the bog, horrifying him.

"There, that ought to make everyone happy!" Kludd said with a smug sense of superiority.

Twilight then glared at him and said "YOU FOOL! That lute was in my family for years! I inherited from my father, who inherited from his father, who won it from his friend's cousin in a bet…" (**Kung Fu Panda reference!**)

"And we care, why?" Kludd asked in a bully-sounding tone.

Twilight glared at him, and Gylfie, atop his head, said "Forget about him, Twilight, Kludd's not worth it, I'm sure we can find it…"

"_METALBEAK! MET-TAL-BEAK! CAN ANY OF YOU DAMN GUARDIANS GET IT RIGHT FOR ONCE IN YOUR DAMN LIFE?!_" Kludd screamed, causing a loud echo throughout the bog, glaring at the Guardians, who were shocked by his anger, except Twilight, as he ignored his angry yelling while he felt for his lute, which he soon did.

"Hey, I think I got it, yep, I know that feel of my lute anywhere…" Twilight said, with hope. Kludd, rolled his eyes angrily, as he turned around to move, when he then tripped over something. Already furious, he shook the black slime out of his eyes and angrily grabbed what he tripped over, and his blood froze…

"Ah, big guy?" The Pure Ones' ex-king said, as he looked back at Twilight, who was trying to pull out his lute.

"Not now, Metalbeak! Can't you see I am trying to get my lute out?!" Twilight shouted at him

Kludd said, "Uh, Twilight, if you are getting the lute out, then why do I have it right here?…" he then presented a gunk-covered lute, shocking Twilight and the others (who were sticking around him to help him find it) and passed it to Soren.

Twilight, at a lost of words, then pulled out what he was grabbing, revealing a black, serpentine body, and soon the head to that body rose out of the slime, showing a set of two fangs, which Twilight then dropped the part he had a hold of and said "Well, I don't think I grabbed my lute…"

The Black Racer (**that's a breed of snake**), let out a vicious hiss, causing every owls, including Kludd, Nyra, and Ezylryb, to shriek, as Soren said "We need to get to solid land, and fast!" as everyone quickly waded away from the snake, but due to the snake's great adaptation to the soupy terrain, it quickly circled around them.

Kludd then let out a battle shriek as he tried to cut the body of the said snake, but the body managed to weave around it, and then Ezylryb screeched "Ret me rake care of rit!" as he tap the body with the torch, causing the snake to roil in pain, as the snake slipped away from them, and everyone quickly tried to get to land, which was fortunately not far from their current position.

Twilight and Gylfie were the first to make it, with Nyra (who always had distaste for snakes) following them, then Ezylryb, and finally Soren, Kludd, and Digger leapt forward onto the solid dirt.

"Land, oh glorious land…" Digger started to laugh for joy, but soon, a tail grabbed his right talon and dragged him into the bog, screaming in typical-horror-film fashion.

"DIGGER!" Soren, Twilight, and Gylfie screamed, as everyone stared in horror at the lost of their friend (And Nyra looked frightened, thinking of what the snake was doing to him right now).

Kludd look in disbelief as that silly Burrowing Owl was dragged into the black abyss, and look down, depressed, as there was nothing they could do…then he realized that his battle claw, the one he had since he became a Pure One, was gone, and then out in the bog, there were a few bubbles, and a glint of silver (that still shined through the black crud).

Deeply angry that the serpent had stole his claw (**Please don't ask how, they're snakes, can't spell sneak without snake**), he stomped forth into the bog, ignoring the shocked questions of his comrades, and as soon as he neared the bubbles, he dived in…

"What is Kludd doing?" Nyra screeched, "He's going to get himself killed!"

Soren then smiled "I think my brother is trying to save Digger!"

Gylfie look at Soren and then prayed to herself "_Please Glaux, please don't let Digger die!_" as tears begin to form in her eyes.

Soon, Kludd burst out of the water, with the snake's neck in his grasp, as he screeched in its face, and in the lower coils, Digger was sputtering, desperately trying to breathe fresh air, as he was baffled with what was going on. However, the snake then forced the masked owl back under the bog, and then they pop out again, and continue like this (**Think of a Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin wrestling with a crocodile**) for a few more times until, with all his strength, Kludd flung the snake at a tree where it wrapped itself around it, letting go of Digger (which Gylfie flew to his side to check on him) and the battle claw.

Kludd walked out of the bog, covered in black gunk, breathing heavily as Soren approached him and said "Kludd…you saved Digger's life, why?"

"_Metalbeak_…" Kludd corrected, and then said "and I didn't do it for him, I was getting these back…" the Barn Owl showed his brother the battle claw, "Saving him was a mere accident."

This disappointed Soren a bit as he then said in a bitter tone, "Would you for once, please pretend that you care? I want the Kludd who was willing to help others and actually gave a damn about others?"

Kludd, a little angry, answered "Well that Kludd is gone, he been gone for a long while, because that Kludd was weak…useless…forgotten…" Kludd finished with a sad tone, concerning Nyra and Soren, but then he said "But now, I am Metalbeak, the heir to the old Metalbeak's legacy, and I am determined to take my throne, my subjects, and the greatness I was destined for back, and I'm not going to let owls like you tell me otherwise." Kludd finished with a glare into Soren's eyes.

Unbeknownst to Kludd, the snake, although stuck to the tree, started to wake up and everyone else noticed it and became frightened, and Nyra said "Uh, Kludd?"

"Not now, Nyra." Kludd said to her without turning.

"Met-Metalbeak…behind you!" Gylfie screeched.

"Shut up, shortie, I'm busy!" Kludd scolded her, as the snake began to rear it head and prepare to strike.

"Rad, risten to rus and rook rehind roo!" Ezylryb screamed, muffled by the torch.

"What? That didn't even make sense!" Kludd screeched at him.

The snake then let out a hiss, prompting Kludd to look behind him, as he froze, and then the snake lunged his fangs at him when suddenly, Digger, who had recovered from his near-death experience and saw the snake about to strike the Barn Owl, shoved him out of the way and the snake's fangs sank into the Burrowing Owl, letting out a shriek.

Kludd, surprised by the owl's bravery, then grabbed the snake's neck with his talon, pried its maw open to get the fangs out of Digger, and then hit its head on the ground, conking it out for a long while.

Then he looked to Digger, who was flinching in pain, as he asked "Why? I treated you like dirt, yet you save me."

"Was just returning the favor, although it hurts so much." Digger answered, before clenching his beak in pain, as he started to lose consciousness.

"Digger? Digger?! DIGGER! NOOOO!" Gylfie cried as she tried to shake him awake, and started to sob into his feathers, "GLAUX WHY! HE HAD SO MUCH TO LIVE FOR! I NEVER GOT THE CHANCE TO TELL HIM…" she burst into even more tears before she finished the thought, as everyone looked down with sadness from losing one of their comrades, as Kludd and Nyra, for once in their life, look with sadness at the motionless owl.

However, as Gylfie cried, she heard a childish voice, "Giffie, why are you crwying?" Gylfie immediately jumped when she heard it, and noticed that Digger had opened his eyes, and look at her with his big green eyes. "Why are you sad?"

"Digger?" Gylfie said in a questioning tone, "Are you alright?"

"Yes, Giffie, I am alwight, but my back hurt…" Digger said, with tears in his eyes.

"Uh, Ezylryb, why is Digger sounding like a baby owlet?" Soren asked in an awkward tone.

Ezylryb, who in turn said, "Hmmm…ret me see…" as he walked over to the unconscious snake and placed the torch aside and look at the fangs.

"Just as I suspected, this snake's venom isn't deadly at all!" Ezylryb said with absolute.

"Really, we were afraid of a non-lethal snake?!" Kludd said in disbelief.

"Well if you put it that way, yes, the stuff from this feller's fangs isn't deadly, but I read that it can cause the afflicted to act all out of sorts, thus explaining the regression in our friend's personality." Ezylryb explained as he pointed out Digger suddenly cuddling with Gylfie, who was blushing at the owl's friendliness.

Then Soren asked "Do the effects wear off?"

"Yes, but it will take a few hours for it to do so." The Lyze of Keil, explained.

"Well, it doesn't matter, Digger is still alive and kicking, and that means we can continue on. I think I see the exit!" Kludd said, pointing to the bit of sunlight starting to shine through the dark.

"Great, I cannot wait to spread my wings and fly!" Nyra said, with relief in her voice.

However, as Digger heard the word 'fly', the Burrowing Owl shrieked and hugged Gylfie like a doll (to her dismay), and cried "No wunna fly, no wunna fly!"

"What is that owl crying about?" Kludd asked, staring at the crying owl.

Twilight, suddenly realizing his friend's plight, then explained "I remember now, since Digger is now thinking like a child, he now has fears like he did as a child."

"Wait, you are telling me that Digger can't fly, because he was afraid of flying when he was an owlet?" Soren said astounded.

"Yup, been 'fraid of flying and heights till up when we met, and since our friend is too afraid to fly, we have to set up camp here for now." Twilight said.

Kludd and Nyra both let out a groan, as Digger let go of Gylfie (who was now gasping for air) and cheered "YAY! Camping with Twilly, Sorey, Giffie, Ribby, Beaky, and Ra-Ra" This earned a few stares from the others.

Kludd was about to correct him, when Ezylryb stopped him saying "He's not in the right mind, Metalbeak, just play along with it."

Kludd groaned again as him and the others went towards a clearing to rest for the morning, but it is safe to say that they manage to beat this bog, but two more obstacles stood in their way before reaching their ultimate destination…

* * *

**A/N: Whew, another chapter done, and I fear that a lot of questions will arise for this one, first off, I had Ezylryb and Digger's dialogue messed up on purpose, to compensate for the fact that the old Screech Owl had a torch in his beak, and Digger's voice had became that of a four-year old, secondly, yes, I know that Black Racers do not have that kind of venom (or any for that matter) in their fangs, but I gave them that for the sake of causing our heroes to stop for the night-er-morning and for the sake of next chapter. And in case anyone wondering, Twilly=Twilight, Sorey=Soren, Giffie=Gylfie, Ribby=Ezylryb, Beaky=Kludd or Metalbeak, Ra-Ra=Nyra (this nickname was inspired by one of my sisters' friend's nickname, and since Nyra has ra in it, it would work). I apologize if I didn't explain the bog enough, it was hard to explain it while keeping the story going, but I hope everyone understand that they couldn't fly so they don't get hit by briars, and that the water level was up to the Barn Owls brothers' midsection, I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and that they will stay tuned for chapter 10! READ AND REVIEW! (And feel free to comment how cute I managed to make Digger, and how I did on Digger/Gylfie concept)**

**_Artworks stuff are appreciated_**


	10. The Story of Two Brothers

**A/N: Okay, this chapter marks a momentous milestone in my story writing, since it is my tenth chapter! In this chapter, there won't be much progress in their adventure, but there will be a story that used to define the two brothers' relationship...**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**Bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mention.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, and LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl**

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Chapter Ten: The Story of Two Brothers

The fire burned brightly, as the heroes rested after traversing the accursed Poison Briar Bog, well, just four of them at least. Kludd, Nyra, Twilight stayed behind at their resting site to watch over Digger, who was still suffering from the venom of the snake, as his mind has regressed to that of a young owlet who was afraid of flying, while Soren, Gylfie, and Ezylryb were busy foraging for food. Kludd was busy kindling the fire while Nyra preened her feathers due to a certain Elf Owl shoving her in the bog a while back, and was still fuming over it, while Twilight merely chuckled, watching Digger entertaining himself by chasing a moth.

Kludd rolled his eyes at Digger's childish antics as he made sounds as he leap at it, and then said to Twilight, "How did you deal with him when you two were kids?"

Twilight merely said "Well, we didn't have any parents so we looked out for each other like brothers, well I did at least. But there was one thing I liked about little Digger over today's Digger."

"Which is?" Kludd asked with a raised brow.

"Observe. Hey, Digger, want to listen to big brother Twilly play a song?!" Twilight asked in a mock child tone.

"YAY! I wuv Twilly's songs!" Digger cheered as he stop chasing the moth and sat in front of Twilight, who started playing a little tune. (**Your Heart Will Lead You Home by Kenny Loggins, that song would fit perfectly.**)

Kludd would have object to the idea, but due to what happen back in the bog, he just let the big owl play this time, but there was something different about the song Twilight was playing; it was good, _very _good, so good that it caused a feeling in Kludd's heart that he hadn't felt for a few years. He watched Digger moving in rhythm to Twilight's music as it started to remind him of a time between him and his brother...

**Flashback starts** (**Note: I am going on a limb that Kludd was 18 in the movie, and Soren was 16, in this story, they are 19 and 17 respectively**)

_Twelve years earlier..._

Back in the Forest Kingdom of Tyto, young 7-year old Kludd (**played by Zachary Gordon, who played Greg Heffley in Diary of A Wimpy Kid**) was busy playing around with his little 5-year old brother Soren (**played by Bradley Steven Perry, who played Gabe in Good Luck, Charlie**) in the nest.

"Tag, you're it, Soren!" Kludd said playfully as tagged Soren.

"No fair, Kludd, you know I had more poofy feathers than you." Soren pouted.

"Don't worry, Sorey, you'll grow out of them, it is the first pellet you got to worry about." Kludd warned with a grimace.

"Now, Kludd, no need to scare the little boy." Kludd turned around to see their nurse-maid Mrs. P with a slightly stern, slightly amused look.

"Sorry, Mrs. P, I was just trying to cheer him up." The young Barn Owl shamefully stated.

The black mamba chuckled as she patted him on the head "Oh it is all right, dear, I just find it sweet that you care about your younger brother."

"Well, Mrs. P, I am his brother," Kludd declared put his stubby right wing around Soren, "and brothers always look out for each other, like da always said."

"Hey, Kludd, you think one day I might beat you at something like tag?" Soren asked innocently, with his big cute brown eyes.

The older brother chuckled as he said "I don't know Sorey, but you are welcome to try, but for now...let see you survive my tickling."

With that, he start tickling his little brother and started rolling around laughing, while Mrs. Plithiver look upon with a smile, hoping that they would forever be like that...

**Flashback ends**

Oh how Kludd regretted those words all those years ago. They were once so close, yet now they were on opposite sides of an aging war, and his brother had effortlessly surpassed him in many things that just made him want to yarp up a pellet. Soon, Twilight's song came to an end, and Digger started to play around again.

Nyra, while cleaning her feathers of the gunk she had got on her feathers, listened to the song Twilight played. Even though he played badly the last time, he miraculously played this song very well, and she saw it's effect on her king, who was merely nodding his head to the music as it played. However, she was mainly focused on her feathers. "_Why did that sprinking owl have to be so pushy? I know we are enemies, but I wouldn't push someone into a bog that could have kill someone. I may be malicious, but I am not heartless._"

Soon, she was finished, and said to herself with pride "Well, that is much better." All of the sudden, she is hit by a few patches of dirt.

Sputtering out the dirt, she glared at the origin of all the flying dirt and see Digger digging holes around the fire, and she then screeched "Do you mind?!"

Digger suddenly stopped and woefully said "Sowwy..."

"Now, Nyra, there is no need to be harsh on the boy, he's currently doesn't know any better. He's a Burrowing Owl for crying out loud!" Twilight scolded, "Besides, you don't need to be clean every hour on the hour!"

Nyra glared at him, what does he know? She is-er-was the queen of the Pure Ones, she had an appearance to keep up. She wasn't vain, but she felt more comfortable when clean, especially when it came to being around the opposite sex. All the Pure Ones, always turn their head at her, thinking very 'pleasurable' thoughts of her, however though, they all knew that she belonged to their leader, Metalbeak...well at least before a _certain_ owl impaled him on a stick.

Even after his death, no one dared attempt to court her for two reasons. One, any owls that tried to make any boisterous or suave moves on her were never heard from again. Two, there was already another owl that Nyra had her eyes on, and that owl was none other than Kludd. She couldn't afford to look less than perfect in front of someone she loved...unfortunately, that was happening right now as Kludd look at her with an amused look.

Nyra looked away shamefully as Kludd chuckled "No need to be uptight, Nyra, it is just a bit of dirt, easily dusted off..." as he approached her and started dusting her feathers, but then as soon as he felt her feathers, both of them jolted. "_Wow...her feathers feel soft...Metalbeak was one lucky owl..._" Kludd said in his mind

The queen on the other hand-er-wing, felt his touch, she quivered a little and thought "_Oh glaux...his touch is so...so...I wonder how his beak would feel..._"

The two Pure Ones looked at each other with those eyes, and since they were both by the fire, it was a romantic moment, and then as they did back in St. Aegolius, they started to lean in for a kiss, and they were so close that Nyra was shivering even more from the new Metalbeak's breath on her neck, but then a mere "excuse me?" shook them out of their moment. (**AHAH! De-wait for it-nied!**)

Kludd and Nyra looked at Digger, the owl who interrupted the moment, and Kludd, really frustrated that their moment was ruined once again, asked in a shaking tone. "What?"

"Do you know when Giffie will be back?" Digger asked in a cute, childish tone.

"You interrupted a possibly sacred moment, just to ask that?!" The masked Barn Owl asked astounded.

"Well...I miss her..." Digger replied in a quiet tone.

"Don't worry, my boy, Gylfie and the others should be back right about now." Twilight said, reassuring the Burrowing Owl, and as if on cue, Soren, Gylfie, and Ezylryb walks in, while dragging a makeshift bag.

"GIFFIE!" Digger cheered as he charged at Gylfie, who in turn was caught off-guard as he started cuddling more with her.

"Calm down, Digger! I am happy to see you, too!" Gylfie said, while blushing more as her crush childishly rub his head against her feathers.

"Aw, looks like he took a liking to you." Soren joked, "_Now if only Digger was in his right mind..._" he thought as he saw the two.

"Well...he is quite affectionate..." Gylfie blushed even more, as she merely patted the burrowing owl's head.

Soren chuckled, and then he looked at Kludd, who was busy standing near one of the trees surrounding the fire. "Kl-Metalbeak? What are you doing?" He caught himself once more as he asked his older brother.

He got his answer when he heard a sound of metal clawing a tree, and Kludd responded "If you must know, I am sharpening my battle claw. When we see Skarmoris again, I intend to rip his..."

"METALBEAK! There is a child here!" Gylfie scolded, as both Kludd and Soren looked at her and Digger, who was quivering from what the Pure One was about to say.

Kludd, feeling awkward, corrected "I mean, kick his tailfeathers...", fortunately, the child-minded owl was immediately satisfied as he returned to cuddling Gylfie once again.

Twilight asked "Had any luck finding food?"

"See for yourself." Ezylryb smugly replied as he open the bag to show grubs and berries, and as soon as he did, Digger stop cuddling the Elf Owl and leapt at the grub and started gorging on them.

Everyone stared in disgust as Soren quipped, "Well, at least Digger hadn't lost his big appetite."

Soon, everyone else started to dig in, except Nyra, who was still slightly disgusted from Digger's eating habit, and Kludd, who was still busy sharpening his claw. Ezylryb noticed and asked "Aren't you two going to eat something?".

"One, I refuse to eat with owls with no table manners..." She glared at Digger, who was oblivious, "Two, me and Kludd already have something in mind." Before the old Screech Owl could ask, Nyra suddenly sent her claw down on an unfortunate mouse who was running by.

Then she presented it to Kludd, who was still focusing on sharpening his claw, with a bow, "Dinner is served, milord."

Kludd didn't turn around, but to not sound ungrateful, he said "Thank you but I am not hungry." Nyra frowned at the king's refusal, but by the way he look when Digger interrupt their second attempt at kissing, she didn't blame him, as she was equally disappointed that the moment was ruined yet again, so she swallowed the dead mouse whole.

Soon, after all the food was eaten (mostly thanks to Digger), everyone merely sat down and stay silent for a bit (well Digger was merely laying his head next to Twilight), when Twilight asked Kludd, still sharpening his claw, "So Metalbeak...I know this may sound like out of the blue, but how was things back at St. Aegolius over the ten months, you know, before _he _came and took everything?"

Kludd stopped clawing the tree for a moment and pondered a bit, before resuming his action, saying "Preparing, we were in a bit of a slump, so me and Nyra spent the last couple months training our soldiers, making new equipment, and over the last two weeks...preparing a feast of my coronation..." His expression then turned sour remembering how that turned out.

Silence ensued once more, when Gylfie asked "How powerful do you reckon Skarmoris is? The way you describe him, you made him out to be a powerful adversary."

Nyra, who was busy watching the fire danced, said "Well, considering that he slaughtered ten soldiers on the way in, and cut down about twenty before we were betrayed, he isn't a foe to take lightly, the way he wielded his two swords were masterful..."

"Swords?" Soren asked, remembering those weapons from the armory back at Ga'Hoole, "That is quite unusual, even though we use them, most owls often chose claws over swords, due to the flexibility of the claws."

"Tell that to _him_, he was able to swing his swords with sheer precision, I think he might have something wrong with his talons." Nyra replied.

"Yeah, I heard some owls having very flexible talons, thus making them expert swordowls. Hopefully, our own skills will be enough to defeat him." Ezylryb stated, with a grim aspect.

"Why, Lyze, you never rubbed me as a kind of owl to be afraid of a Pure One. Where were that owl when you _ripped _off my mate's face." Nyra asked in a surprised and annoyed tone.

"I did not rip his face off, I merely gave his face an improvement," This prompted another one of the queen's death glares, "besides, this owl sounds like a hagsfiend in comparison to any Pure One or villain I had come across..."

"Let's not forget that he has two well-trained owls as his personal bodyguards. They manage to take down a couple of soldiers on their own without breaking a sweat," the she-owl reminded, matter-of-factly.

Kludd, listening in on the two's discussion, then sneered while he scraping his claws against the poor tree "It doesn't matter who he has serving him or how good he is, all I know is, the moment I get my talons on him, he will cease to exist."

Soren sighed as he replied "You shouldn't be so cocky, Kludd, it's those kind of attitude that prevented you from defeating us all those times, like when we teamed up with our alternate selves..."

Kludd immediately froze when he mention them, and then Nyra asked "What on earth are you talking about?"

Soren looked at Kludd, who had finally stop sharpening his claws (**which I'm guessing is pretty sharp right now**) and was glaring at him, and asked "You hadn't told her, Kludd?"

"Told me what?" Nyra demanded, in a frustrated tone, as she gave a questioning look at her king, who was looking away in shame.

"Well, one day while I was patrolling around the border, I ran into him..." Soren gestured to his brother, "We got into a little scuffle where I was able to subdue my brother, while I was trying to get away, I found a bright light in the side of this one mountain. Then suddenly, someone came from that light, and before I knew it, I was staring at none other than Kludd, except with a helm of a Guardian."

"WHAT?!" Nyra screeched, "How in Glaux's name is that even possible?!"

"Oh, that isn't even the most shocking part, this Kludd was from another alternate reality, in which he became a guardian, and as for me...I became the new Metalbeak and leader of the Pure Ones."

"WHAT?!" Gylfie and Twilight screamed, and Ezylryb had an atonished look upon his face, and Nyra was even more shocked.

"Yes, and to make matters worse, that said Soren came from the light as well, and the Metalbeak we knew..." he gestured to Kludd once more, "and let say that he and my other self hit it off real well. Soon, me and other Kludd were fighting against Kludd and other me, and we eventually manage to beat them by exploiting our own weaknesses in our other selves due to their unwillingness to accept their weakness..." Kludd snarled at that remark, "and soon other Soren was flung back into his world and Kludd fled, and after a few words of farewell, the other Kludd return back to his world and that light disappeared...and that was the last I saw of either Kludd till a few hours ago." Soren finished.

When he did finished, everyone was astonished with what Soren had just told them; they did believe him without a doubt, but still, it was quite shocking.

"Wait..." Nyra enquired, "That means Nix was telling the truth about you meeting your other half after all?" she asked Kludd.

"Nix _did _tell you?" Kludd was just as surprised, as he thought Nix was keeping his secret, well, a secret.

"What do you mean tell me?" Nyra repeated, feeling betrayed that her king hadn't told her this, even though she told him to never lie to her, "Nix came to me one day saying that you apparently defeated by your brother and another owl that was you, except from another world. I didn't believe him, since I know he hated you, but now...you're telling me that all Soren and Nix said were true?"

"Well...if I did tell you, you would have thought I was crazy!" Kludd said in a defensive tone, "It was already humiliating that I was beaten by my younger brother, but to be beaten by him and myself..." He couldn't finish the sentence.

"Kludd..." Soren tried approaching him.

"DAMN IT! IT IS METALBEAK! DON'T THINK I DIDN'T NOTICED THE LAST FOUR TIMES YOU CALL ME THAT! NOW IF YOU EXCUSE ME..." Kludd then turned away angrily as he went back to the tree and started clawing the crud out of it.

Soren was about to comfort him when Nyra stepped in front of him, saying "Haven't you done enough?"

The Guardian was appalled by her gall to say such thing, "How dare you! I was trying to tell him what happens when he gets too cocky, which he became because of _you_ owls!"

Nyra rebutted "_Us _owls? We had nothing to do with Kludd..."

"Don't you dare use his name! He is my brother! You have _no _right to call him that!" Soren interrupted, with a fierce glare.

"I have no right?!" Nyra repeated, "I've been at his side for a year, being a fateful follower to him! I was his general as he was my king!"

"That is rich!" Soren spat with sarcasm, "I know that if you didn't exist, Kludd would have never joined the Pure Ones, I know he wouldn't have!"

Then as if she had spoken with Kludd's voice back at the Forest of Beak, she said "Then you don't know him...at all." with one of the most venomous glare she had ever gave someone. "And..." then she smacked him hard with her right wing, "that was for Metalbeak..." as she then went to the other side of the fire.

Silence had struck for the third time as everyone stared at Nyra, who was silently fuming, and then at Soren, who was rubbing his sore cheek, thus creating an awkward atmosphere.

Kludd, who was hearing the fight between Soren and Nyra, gave a quiet sigh, as much as he want to correct Soren on calling him Kludd once more, he couldn't have, and thought "_How can he still think of me as his brother? After everything I did, after all the pain I caused him, ma, da..._" He just shook the thought as he noticed the tree he was clawing had a huge dent in the side, and decided to switch to another tree right next to it.

Ezylryb then broke the silence by saying, "Well, all of us should get some sleep, the sun will be rising soon and we have a lot more ground to cover."

Everyone, including Nyra, nodded to that notion, and Kludd merely continued sharpening his second claw. Ezylryb was going to tell him to get some sleep, but opted against, he couldn't ask the once leader of the Pure Ones to go to sleep, as he probably still fuming over some stuff.

As everyone was settling down to go to sleep, Soren looked back at Kludd and then at Nyra, and then sighed to himself before he felt a nudge. He looked down to see Digger, who then asked in a cute tone, "Sorey, could you tell me a daytime story?"

Soren, not sure how to response, since the only owls that would ask him of that were Eglantine and other owlets who want to hear about the story of how he defeated Metalbeak, never had another grown owl had ask him to tell him a bedtime story, then again, Digger wasn't really in the right mind, so he guess it wouldn't hurt... "Okay, Digger, I can tell you _one _story, then it's off to sleep." Soren said in a mock parental tone.

"Great, another story about the bloody Guardians, I wonder how this story will end..." Kludd sarcastically spat as he continued working on the tree.

Soren was about to scold him, but then remember the conversation he had with Nyra, "_Then you don't know him...at all._" He knew that Kludd had little regards for the Guardians even before meeting the Pure Ones, and telling the one of him defeating Metalbeak will surely anger Nyra (which he didn't cared...well, at least, he think he didn't) and Kludd, and it wouldn't help him in trying to save his brother.

"_Brother...brothers...That's it!_" Soren realized, as he remembered a story that his father used to tell him and Kludd before Eglantine was born, a story that both of them had cherished for a long while. "Well, Metalbeak, you'll be happy to know that I won't be telling any stories regarding the Guardians tonight." Soren declared with a hidden smirk. "The story I will be telling is..._The Two Brothers of the North._"

Immediately, Kludd stopped with his clawing as he heard the name, "_No...Soren couldn't possibly remember..._" and soon everyone, who were trying to sleep, arose when they heard the name, even Nyra was interested.

"The Two Brothers of the North? I never heard of it." Gylfie said, mystified.

"Quite right, Gylfie, in my time of serving the Guardians, I never once heard a story such as that." Ezylryb admitted.

"Pwease tell me the story, Sorey!" Digger pleaded, obviously excited by the name of the story.

Soren gave a glance at Kludd, who had stopped clawing, then thought of a way to get Kludd more into this story.

"I'll try, but it had been years since I had heard the story..." Soren confessed, and with a clear of his throat, he began.

'A long time ago, there was an evil owl known as...known as...' Soren pretended to forget the name, and then said "Windbreaker!"

This immediately caused Kludd to correct, "No, no, no! That was not the owl's name!"

"Winchester?" Soren played stupid.

"No, not that." Kludd said becoming even more annoyed, while joining the group.

"Deadbritches?" Soren guessed.

"Damn it, Soren, do I need tell the story instead? Because obviously you don't remember squawk." Kludd asked with an annoyed glare.

"Sure, Kludd, be my guest." Soren willingly complied, giving him a smirk.

Then Kludd realized that his brother had tricked him into being the one to tell the story, and said "_Oh, he is so dead once this is over!_"

Digger turned to the Barn Owl and said, "Yeah, Beaky! Pwease tell the story!" while giving him puppy eyes.

The scarred Barn Owl, unable to get out of the situation, sighed as he then said, "Alright...allow me to tell you the story of two brother's battle against one of the greatest evil the owl kingdoms had ever faced..."

'A long time ago, before the time of the Lyze of Keil and Metalbeak, there was an evil owl known as...the _Deathbringer_, an owl whose heart whose colors matched the blackest nights, and whose eyes matched that of pure blood.' This prompted a nervous glance from Digger, 'The owl was truly powerful, as he killed many owls with only his own two claws, and had terrorized the owl kingdoms. He killed anyone who stand in his path, may he or she be a Guardian or a Pure One, a grown owl or a owlet, it mattered not, as the owl, with feathers of eternal night and an army of the strongest yet ruthless owls, continue his conquest for supreme power.'

'This had caught the attention of the Guardians, as well as the Pure Ones, as the evil owl made his way from the south, and as for the first time in owl history, the two greatest rivals in known history had joined force to defeat this darkness. However, this new partnership had changed nothing, as despite all their efforts, the combined forces' power was not enough to stop the Deathbringer, as he and his army defeated them both without a second thought. The two groups of owls were at their darkest hour, and had lost all hope, as all they could do was pray...'

This prompted a gasp from Digger, as well as nervous stares from Gylfie and Twilight, but Soren and Kludd, as if in sync, both gave a smirk as Kludd continued, 'Then, as if a miracle sent by Glaux himself, two snowy owls from the far northern reaches of the owl kingdoms, had appeared before them. The younger owl had the speed of the hummingbird and the cunning of a fox while the older owl had the strength and leadership of an eagle, together, they were an unstoppable force. Hearing their pleads and prayers, they had come to smite the darkness that threaten the entire owl race, and the older brother said with pride, "_It matters not whether you follow the path of light and order, or the path of darkness and dominance, it matters not whether you have the strength, the intelligence, or the courage, all that matters is that you follow your heart and dreams, as no matter how dark the path it leads you on, it will always guide you true._"

'With those words, the Guardians, the Pure Ones, and the two brothers took to the sky once more, as they confronted the monster and his legion, and as if the words of the older brother gave them newfound strength, they were defeating the legion. Angered by the two brother's meddling, he personally took them on in a two-on-one battle; the fight was long and brutal as the three owls exchanged blow after blow, but with the teamwork of the duo, they have managed to defeat the _Deathbringer_, and brought peace to the owl kingdoms...' Kludd finished with a proud smile, and the others clapped at such a great story, Digger cheered, and Nyra gave a smile, forgetting about her king not telling her the truth, and her fight with Soren; she never thought that Kludd would be an excellent storyteller as well as a good fighter and leader, like the older brother in the story.

"Exemplary storytelling, lad, you obviously share Soren's gift as a raconteur!" Ezylryb complimented.

"I'll say, that is one good story for the ages, I wonder why I hadn't heard of it." Twilight said.

"You know, that does bring up a point, why wasn't this in the library back in Ga'Hoole?" Gylfie asked.

The old Lyze of Keil shrugged, "Well, our librarian has a strict policy against fiction, I suppose everyone thought that story was all it was, a story."

"Well, it doesn't matter. All I know is that me and Kludd used to love that story, and we always pretended to be the two brothers, remember Kludd?" Soren asked. Indeed, the older brother did remember the fun they used to have being the two brothers like in the story, and he smiled.

Then Soren said, "Although I wonder why da haven't told us that story in years."

Kludd, whose expression changed from happy to sad, then answered, "You don't remember, do you? About how the story truly ends?"

Suddenly, it hit Soren, he remembered one day when Noctus was telling them the story, Kludd asked if that was how the story truly went, when he noticed that he told the end differently each time he told the story. It was then when Noctus sadly told the true unabridged version of how the story ended.

"What do you mean, Beaky?" Digger asked, while growing a bit tired.

Kludd sighed as he told the end 'However, their victory was short-lived, as the Deathbringer, still living despites all his wounds, summoned the last of his strength and charged his blade at the younger brother. Then in a flash, the older brother took his sword, and pushed the younger brother out of the way as he took the blade to his body and with a final blow, he killed the Deathbringer. The monster was slain, but the older brother suffered a mortal wound from that stab, and...' the new Metalbeak said with a heavy heart, 'he died in his younger brother's wings, and soon after his burial, the younger brother was never heard from again, and they were both forgotten by history.'

Everyone stared, agaped at the extended version, and Digger, shaking his head no, said "No...no, that can't be the ending, it can't."

"What do you want me to say? No matter how what we do, the end is the same, the older brother dies, while the younger brother lives..." Kludd said, as he then returned to the tree he was clawing and merely laid against it.

"Kludd...I...I..." Soren tried to explain himself, when Ezylryb put his wing on his shoulder.

"You tried your best, lad, just let him sleep it off." He said, as Soren then laid against another tree trunk and tried to get some sleep.

Twilight and him soon followed suit, and Gylfie was about to go to sleep when Digger asked "Giffie, may I sleep with you?"

The Elf Owl, caught completely off guard by the question, but then she remember that Digger was thinking like a child and said "Uh, sure..." while trying not to blush anymore than she had tonight. Digger then scooted up to her, and despite being slightly taller than her, he put his head next to Gylfie and then placed his wings around her, and closed his eyes.

Gylfie, about ready to close her eyes, when Digger asked "Giffie? Can you promise me that you won't go away?" the small owl was confused by what he was asking, when he continued "I'm afwaid of losing my fwiends, Sorey, Twilly, Ribby, even Beaky and Ra-Ra, but I will be weally sad if you die, promise me you won't die, I wuv you."

The smaller owl felt tears come to her eyes and a bit of joy in her heart that her crush said that, even though it was probably the venom talking, it felt that he really mean it. She then chuckled, "I'll promise, my little digger." With that, Digger went to sleep and Gylfie whispered, "I love you, too." as she, too, went to dreamland, and everyone was fast asleep.

Everyone, except Nyra, who was busy kindling the fire and was thinking about Kludd, who by the way, was still awake. Then, she went to Kludd's side and when he didn't acknowledge her presence, she then said, "Well, if it counts for anything, I thought the older brother was kinda cute, like a certain older brother I know."

Kludd gave a slight smile, before reverting to a blank yet sad stare, when he then said "Look, I am sorry for not telling you about meeting my other self and other Soren, it just...it just that losing to them was just another add on to the list of things I have failed at, I was already doing a terrible job as a leader, and this...this was another failure I didn't need.

Nyra sighed "I am no longer angry about that, I admit, I was a little hurt, but I suppose that anyone would be uncomfortable saying you had been beaten by yourself, and besides, you were a great leader, Skarmoris just said all that to get in your head."

"But he's right, I had done nothing for the Pure Ones for over ten months, and the things I did do ended in failure. It is no wonder why my soldiers abandoned me. I don't even know why you would stick with me," Kludd moped.

Fed up with his self-loathing, Nyra then grabbed his shoulders and made him look at her and snarled, "Look here, Kludd, you are the new Metalbeak! The reason the soldiers abandoned you were because they are disloyal swines! Sure, we had drawbacks in the past, but that does not make you a bad leader! As for why I stay by your side is..." she wanted to say 'because, I love you', but seeing how now was not the time, she just went with... "because I owe it to my mate to see that his legacy lived on in you, he would have been proud of you, just as I am, Kludd, you honor him everyday by just wearing that helm. If that isn't being a great leader, then I don't know what is..."

The Barn Owl, touched by her devotion, smiled, and then, he turn to the rising sun and said, "I used to take what the elder brother said to heart, about how your heart and dreams will always guide you true. I believed in it for so long, but when I finally found out that he died, he just proved his words wrong." He then stared at Nyra with crestfallen eyes, "He believed in his heart and dreams and look what happen to him! That is when I stop believing in them; I taught myself that you carve your own path in life, and relying on anything such as dreams, your heart, or anything else would be a waste of time, because all you need is a goal, and with that in mind, all you need to do is give it your all to see that goal to the end."

The white Barn Owl, taking in what he said, asked "And that goal is?"

"To take back my kingdom, defeat the Guardians once and for all, and finally, show everyone I am the better brother, not Soren." He declared.

"Words well put, my king, we should get some rest." Nyra stated, as she then laid against the trunk Kludd was leaning on, and then said to Kludd with a smirk "Well, aren't you going to get some sleep?"

Kludd, merely gulped as she was asking him to sleep next to her, back at St. Aegolius, they had different hollows, despite rumors that were going on about them, and this would be the first time that Kludd slept next to a female, well, if you don't count your little sister. Summoning all his courage, he merely laid down next to her and said "Uh...goodnight, Nyra."

Amused by her king's nervousness, she then whispered in his ear-hole and said "Good night, my king." as she then went to sleep.

Kludd slightly blushed when she did so, and then looked to the sky once more and said to himself, "One day, I will give you a true reason to be proud of me, Metalbeak, and..." as he stole a glance at Nyra's now sleeping figure, "I will protect your mate with my life," and with that, he finally went to sleep, as it was still a long road to Skarmoris, and he plans to defeat him by any means necessary.

Looking down upon the group atop a branch of a tree that had no briars on it, Samuel gave a smile, and said "I have no doubt in my mind that you will, Kludd." as he faded away again...

* * *

**A/N: Whew... another long and brutal chapter done, but I am quite pleased with how it turned out, we had Kludd/Nyra moments, as well as Digger/Gylfie moments, and a tender Soren and Kludd brotherly love moment. For characters' ages, I am going with Kludd being 19 (18 in film), Soren being 17 (16 in film) in human years, but I have no idea how old Nyra nor Eglantine and the others are, so could you guys possibly tell me how old Nyra, Eglantine, and the original Metalbeak are in human years? As for the story part, I am sorry for giving the story a sad ending, but I had to for there to be a reason for Kludd's disbelief in dreams. I also like to say sorry to you Kludd/Nyra fans for teasing you yet again with another almost kiss, but I assure you, this is the last time I will tease. Well, I don't know what else to say other than READ AND REVIEW! (P.S. Did you guys like how cute I made Digger and how I fit Samuel into the last bit?) (P.S.S. The part about other Soren and other Kludd is in Worlds Apart by bluecatcinema.) Bad news guys, this is the last chapter that I had written, so it going to take a while for me to get another chapter up, I hope you guys will be patient with me...**


	11. The Band and The Hawks

**A/N: …Wow…I'm sorry, but in the few days that chapter ten was up, I only got one review! I would appreciate it if I had more reviews, but that's just me. Okay, I hope you guys are ready for chapter eleven! In this chapter, we will see our next obstacle as well as a couple more OCs. WARNING: This chapter does contain sexual references and mention of rape and child abuse, as well as a bullying scene, how? I will explain it in this chapter.**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**Bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mention.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, and LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl**

* * *

Chapter Eleven: The Band and the Hawks

The day had flown by as fast as the wind, and soon, it was sunset yet again as the heroes started to awaken. The first one to had woken up was Digger, as he scrunch his eyes together as he was suffering a bad headache, however, he opened his eyes, he saw feathers, someone's else feathers, he was leaning against Gylfie. His heart immediately froze and all he could said was a mixture of a screech and a caw, "caweeeep?!"

This immediately woke everyone up, as Twilight, who was sleeping next to Ezylryb, quickly flinched and rolled over the old owl, Soren immediately got up and tripped over, and Kludd and Nyra both hit their head against each other when they flinch, and Gylfie immediately jumped, as everyone then stared at Digger, confused, (well, Kludd and Nyra glared at him) and Digger, who was equally confused, then stuttered, "What...what's going on?! Why was I doing sleeping next to Gylfie?"

"Digger! You are back to normal!" Soren cheered.

"Yeah...back to normal..." Kludd muttered, as he rubbed his head.

"Don't you remember anything?" Gylfie asked.

"Last thing I remember is getting two fangs in my back, and then it is a complete blank." Digger replied, "oh, and that I have this headache!" as he clutched his head with his wings.

Gylfie drooped, as last night was memorable for her, and it pained her heart a little, but being the well-composed owl she was, all she said was "Well, I'm sure Ezylryb has something in his satchel. Speaking of whom, where is he?"

Twilight, still dazed from the wake-up call, then started to shake a little, and then there was a loud murmur under him. "I think I might know..." the giant owl muttered.

More sounds came from under him, and Nyra, who was also rubbing her head, asked "What did he say?"

"Let me see..." Digger said, as he put his head close to the ground, as Ezylryb gave out another muffled scream, and he said, "I'm not sure, he's either saying, 'Get the hags some meat' or 'Getta haggling me'." Everyone wingpalmed...

* * *

An hour later, after the old owl recovered from being smushed like a plate, the band had took to the sky again as they continued their way to _Le Pilier de la Suprématie_, fortunately, in comparison to the scary bog they had to traverse, they were flying on smooth winds, however, little did they know that they were about to fly into hostile territory known as the _Hawk's Ravine..._

After unknowingly entering the territory, Digger asked "So, you guys are telling me that I had a mind of a owlet, asked Soren to tell me a daytime story, to instead have Metalbeak here," he gestured to Metalbeak as he was at the head of the formation, "where he told this tragic story about two brothers and this owl called Deathbringer, and that I cuddled with Gylfie here, a lot?" Digger finished with a awkward glance at Gylfie who was in turn feeling just as awkward.

"Pretty much, Digger," Soren answered, "and the fact that you actually liked Twilight's songs."

"No way." Digger denied.

"Oh yes way, my dear friend, you said, and I quote " I wuv Twilly's songs!" Twilight mocked in a merry tone.

"No way in hagsmire did I say that!" Digger rebutted, a little embarrassed.

"Oh yes you did!" Twilight rebounded.

Then a 'did not, did too' argument ensued between Digger and Twilight. Watching them fight, Gylfie then let out a sigh as she continued flying. Taking note of this, Nyra pulled back a little, and asked "You're actually not going to confront him on how friendly he was acting toward you?"

Gylfie then rebutted "He had the mind of an owlet when he did that, it is obvious that he didn't actually mean it."

"I wouldn't be so sure, that owl interrupted a...special moment between me and Kludd, just to ask when you will be back, I may not be an expert when it comes to love, but I know a lovestrucked owl when I see one, and Digger is one." Nyra stated for a fact.

Gylfie was trying to deny that statement, but then she thought "_Could Digger possibly feel the same way?_" as she looked back and see Digger and Twilight wrestling around in the sky, and she smirked; she wasn't sure if he truly return the feelings, but at least Digger was his funny old self again.

As they continued flying, Soren asked Kludd "Hey, how long do you think it is to the Hawk's Ravine?"

Kludd shrugged "I don't know, no one had been to that part in ages, all I know is that it used to belong to a group of hawks till the Pure Ones cleared them out.

"So, in other words, we are somewhat lost." Soren merely said.

"Pretty much." Kludd admitted.

"We won't be for long, I think I see someone." Ezylryb pointed out, as the owls went and skim the trench-like river, they approached a tree branch at a fork. Atop that tree branch, there was a black-shouldered kite (**a type of bird**), standing there, doing nothing.

Soon, they landed on a rock in front of the tree branch and Kludd step forth to ask "Hey, uh, you, do you know where we are?"

The kite remained silent, as he suddenly started moving his wings in a weird rowing motion and pretend to be whistling.

"Uh, that doesn't really answer our question," Soren said, a little weirded out, as the white bird changed to a motion that look liked he was pulling on a pulley.

Getting a little annoyed, Nyra asked "Well, aren't you going to say anything?", the black-shouldered bird didn't say anything and started to do like a swimming motion.

"I don't think he can." Gylfie enquired, as the bird continued doing to 'swim in mid air'.

"I think he might be trying to tell us through wing-gestures!" Twilight said with a snap of a talon, "Digger happens to be great at charades," as he pushed Digger forward.

Little did they know, that something was coming up right behind them...

"Ok, let's see..." Digger said, as he studied the kite's eccentric and erratic movement while going "Ah-huh" and "Hmmm", and then with confidence, he then stated "According to this bird, he's saying 'I am distracting you stupid owls so that my buddies can grab you up in a net from behind us.'" As he said that, the kite slowed down realizing that he just been found out, and the other owls were in shock by Digger's ability to see through gibberish and by what he said.

Then, as soon as the owls looked behind him, four birds with a net send a net upon the owls. Kludd and Nyra, since they were trained for battle, were quick to react and dodge the net, and Gylfie, being small, managed to slip out, however, Soren, Digger, Twilight, and Ezylryb weren't so lucky.

As the captured owls struggled to get out of the net, Kludd quickly shot his head up to the birds flying by, and taunted "Ah-ha! You missed us, you fools!"

However, as Kludd was busy taunting them, a giant shadow cast over him, instantly catching the attention of Gylfie and Nyra, as they were intimidated by the size of the one casting it. "Uh...Metalbeak? You may want to look behind you!" Gylfie stuttered.

"What are you talking..." the Barn Owl partially said as he turned around, but when he did, he saw golden feathers. He looks up to see an angry face of a giant golden eagle, however, being the cocky owl he was, he just shrugged it off and said "Oh, now they sent a tough bird to rustle the rest of us? Well, bring it..."

"[SMACK!]" The golden eagle pounded the new Metalbeak on the head, immediately dazing him.

"KLUDD!" Nyra and Gylfie both screeched at the same time as the owl was stumbling dizzily.

"ARE YOU OKAY, MY KING?!" Nyra asked with a tinge of concern as she approached the dazed Pure One.

"So bid the forest a fond goodbye, as you brace the wind and...take to the..." Kludd dizzily sang before fainting on the last word, and the two ladies look fearfully at the vicious eagle as he grab them both with his talons, and signal the same birds who sent the net upon the heroes, which are revealed to be sharp-shinned hawks, and with a little coordination, the two hawks grab the net with the four trapped owls, while two others grabbed the knocked-out Barn Owl, as the golden eagle flew with the two struggling female owls in his strong talons. In his sudden state of unconsciousness, a memory came into Kludd's mind of an instant a few years ago...

**Flashback starts**

_Nine years earlier..._

In the Forest Kingdom of Tyto, Kludd, now ten year old, was busy walking through the woods looking for his younger brother, Soren, now eight year old, as they were playing a game of hide-and-seek. Fortunately, according to what his da said when they were first allowed to play on the ground level, they weren't allowed to go far from the tree, so it narrowed down the numbers of hiding places.

"Soren! Soren!" the young Barn Owl called out, "Where did that brother of mine gotten to?" he mumbled to himself.

Then he heard the familiar cries of his younger brother, but then he heard a few laughing after it. Immediately worried about his brother, Kludd quickly ran as fast as his stubby talons could carry him, and soon he found the source of the sounds.

Soren was surrounded by three slightly older owlets, and they were harassing him. One of them, a Barn Owl, pushed Soren and mocked "What the matter, shorty? Did you fall down?"

Then another owl, also a Barn Owl, picked him up and smacked him with his right wing, and smarmed "Why do you keep hitting yourself, pipsqueak?"

Soren, then started to cry and said "Please leave me alone..."

Then the older one, a grass owl (**voiced by Frankie Muntz, who played Malcolm in Malcolm in the Middle**), approached him and chuckled in a dark tone, "You really crying over getting hit? I get hit all the time, and I'm still standing. I give you something to cry about." as he grabbed Soren by the throat with his left talon, and held his right talon to his face.

Soren figured out what he was doing and started pleading, "PLEASE! NO! MA! DA! BROTHER! HELP ME!" as he cried more.

The grass owl gave a evil smirk as he prepared to permanently scar the poor Barn owlet for life when another Barn owlet rammed him, releasing his grip on Soren. Angry, the leader looked at the one who interfered and saw a rather-peeved owlet, slightly younger than him, with the one he was picking on cowering behind him. Then, he demanded "You leave my young brother alone!"

Surprised to think that he would had the audacity to attack him, the bully boasted "Or what? You're going to run back to your mommy and daddy? Oh-ho, once me and my friends are through with both of you, there isn't going to be anyone left to tell them."

Soren quivered in fear of the owls, and then Kludd told him, "Get back, Soren, this is going to get a little ugly..." Soren was concerned about him, but he immediately did so, as he watched in fear as the three owlets close in on his brother...

_A few minutes later..._

Soren and Kludd were walking back to their tree, well, at least Kludd was trying, as he had a few scratches and bruises, and a left black eye and was limping. The little brother was keeping him steady, and then woefully apologized, "I'm sorry I got you hurt..."

"Don't worry about it, Soren." Kludd said, with a weak smile, "Like I said three years ago, brothers always look out for each other."

"But I don't want you to get in trouble with ma and da." Soren pointed out.

"I got that covered, I'll just say that I tripped and fell down a hill, besides, I did more to those feather-head bullies than they did to me." Kludd said with a smirk, cheering Soren up, as the two brothers happily made their way home...

Meanwhile, back at the clearing, the grass owl and his two pals were trying to get up, but couldn't, since all of them were covered in more scratches and bruises than Kludd was, and the leader had it worse as had two black eyes, and was hurting all over. One of the Barn Owl weakly asked, "What do we do now, Nix?"

Nix, then said, while pushing his back up a tree as a brace, "I don't know, but I swear, one day I going to get that damn Barn Owl, and when I do, he will be begging for mercy..."

**Flashback ends**

Kludd was immediately awakened by a splash of water, and immediately shot up and looked around, and saw that he was surrounded by what seems to be hundreds of hawks (one of them had a bucket) in what seems to be a giant room in a cave, similar to that of the one he and Soren were in when they first saw Nyra. Speaking of whom, the hawks who carried the net had two other hawks sliced it open, thus emptying Soren and the three other male owls out as they stumbled to the ground, and then the golden eagle, the same one who conked him out earlier, landed close to the ground and released Gylfie and Nyra as they quickly went to the others.

"KLUDD, YOU'RE OKAY!" Nyra quickly leapt at him, hugging him. Then she realized what she was doing and let go, and apologized "Sorry…that was out of line."

"Well, it's fine, but what's going on?" Kludd asked, while slightly intimidated by the hundreds of narrowing eyes.

"I don't know, I tried asking him," the white Barn Owl gestured to the golden eagle who was now standing at the head of the room, "but he stayed silent."

Soon, Soren, recovering from being trapped in a net and the short stumble, looked around and saw all the birds surrounding them; he gave a nervous 'what's going on' glance at Kludd, who then just shrugged, when all the sudden, a voice echoed across the room, "Greetings, guests, welcome to our humble home within the cliffside of the Hawk's Ravine..." (**This voice is that of Simon Baker, the one who played Patrick Jane in The Mentalist**)

Kludd's eyes went wide when he heard the voice, and that voice also jolted up Digger, Twilight, and Ezylryb, who were all trying to recover from being in a net (**Yeah, it is quite grueling sharing a net with three other owls**), and Soren was looking around, trying to see where the voice was coming from, when the voice echoed again "Look to the head of the room..."

The owls then looked towards the head of the room, where the golden eagle was, and were about to gasp when the voice then said, "The one behind the big golden eagle..." as the golden eagle stepped aside to reveal a perch with a devilishly (emphasis on the devil) handsome red-tailed hawk, much smaller than the golden eagle and was in a shadow. This prompted whews from everyone, including Kludd and Nyra.

"What?" The red-tailed hawk asked, "You expected some strong eagle like my friend here..." he gestured the big eagle, "To be the leader of this organization? There is so many things wrong with that, the major one being this..." As he then gave a nod to the eagle.

The eagle then said "I am strong...I am handsome...I am FATAL!" with a shout at the end. (**played by Jason Segel, the one who played Marshall in How I Met Your Mother**)

Kludd and the others gave each other confused looks when the hawk said "Wait a moment, say my name." to the eagle.

"I am strong...I am handsome...I am FATAL!" The eagle repeated.

Then the hawk explained, "This big guy right here is Fatal, and as you can see, he is retarded, as all he ever say is that, which is why we just call him Fatal." Then he stepped off his perch and approach the owls when he recognized one of them, "Well, well, well, it isn't my old friend Lyze." he said as he finally stepped out the shadows to reveal his handsome figure.

The old Screech Owl's eyes widen and then narrowed into a glare, and muttered "Harris Hawk..."

"Harris Who?" Digger asked, a little confused.

"Hawk." Ezylryb corrected as he then continued, "He is Harris Hawk, a ladies' hawk, a skilled fighter, and...a world class con-bird and thief, not to mention a giant thorn in the Guardians' side."

"Oh, Lyze," Harris said in an fake insulted tone, "You said that like I am a no-good nick. Don't you remember the fun we used to have? We try to rip off an artifact, you Guardians come to stop us, we fight, you win, we all go home satisfied. Remember?" He finished with a half-evil, half-amused smile

The old owl gave a small smirk, "Yeah..." but then shook it off and stated, "But that doesn't excuse you for kidnapping us! Furthermore, _Harris_, I go by the name Ezylryb now!"

"Ah, yes, I remember that, The Battle of the Ice Claws, you lost your one of your claws while you ripped that one owl's face off..." He remembered, then he asked "What did that owl go by afterwards?"

"Metalbeak..." Kludd spat with venom at the hawk, trying to defend his old master's honor.

This caught the bird's attention when he looked at the owl and approached him, and noticed his helm, "Oh, well, well, well, who do we have here, a charlatan pretending to be our old friend Metalbeak? I got to say, you share his bad attitude and his disregard for manners, but you certainly don't look like him, and he certainly wouldn't be running with Guardians..."

"Leave my brother alone!" Soren ordered, as he tried to step in between them, but a couple sharp-shinned hawks pinned him down before he could.

"Brother? Wait a minute..." Harris said while studying the young Barn Owl, before giving the hawks who pinning him down a look that prompted them to back off and then lift him up and said, "I know you...you are the one who killed Metalbeak," then he yelled to his men, "HEY GUYS! This owl here is the famous Pure One Kingslayer!" All the hawks then gasped, and the owls gave each other nervous glances.

Then the leader hawk turn to Soren with what seems to be a glare, "Well, my boy..." and what came next surprised everyone, as Harris hugged him and said "YOU ARE OUR SAVIOR!" as the entire cast* started to cheer.

The small parliament* of owls were confused as they did so, and Soren asked "What? I don't understand, weren't you guys friends with Metalbeak?"

"Ohohoh, that damn owl was the one who kicked us out of our home when he became king, but since you slain him, we were able to take back our home. You were practically a glauxsend." Harris explained, "I am honored to had finally met you." He finished with a bow.

Then Digger, relieved at the newfound lack of tension, asked, "So…does that mean you are going to let us go?"

The whole kettle* went quiet as he said that, and Harris got back up to normal height, and had a indifferent stare, "I am afraid that is not a possibility." Then all the hawks grabbed hold of all the owls' wings and held them behind their backs (**like you would see people with hands tied behind their backs**).

"Wait a minute, one moment you are thanking us, and now we are your prisoners? I am not getting this." Twilight said with a questioning look.

"Well, my giant owl friend, your pal here…" The hawk gestured to Soren, but he didn't know his name.

"Soren." The Barn Owl spat.

"Right, your pal Soren may have killed the owl that was the bane of our existence, but that doesn't change the fact that you guys are Guardians, and quite like your friend Lyze…" Harris continued.

"Ezylryb!" The Whiskered Screech Owl corrected.

"Whatever, like him, I thought the Guardians to be a painful nuisance, and glaux damn me that I can't resist taking four of them prisoners, as well as the once-king of the Pure Ones…" the red-tailed hawk proceeded.

"Once? Wait, how did you know that…" Kludd asked, before getting his mouth covered by Harris, who then gave him a devious smirk.

"Come on, Metalbeak…" The handsome bird chuckled before giving him a questioning glare, "If I should call you that. Nothing happens within the Pure Ones' territory without my knowing, even if I am away from it. I know about Lord Skarmoris, and I know that if I leave him alone, he leave me alone." The hawk finished with a haughty tone, as Kludd gave him a glare.

Then Digger realized something, "Wait a minute, you got the math wrong. You said four of us and Metalbeak, you forgot two."

The suave leader then looked over at him, "No, I believe I didn't…"

"Digger." The Burrowing Owl quickly stated.

"Okay, Digger, I didn't get it wrong, because you should know that we hawks only take _male _owls as prisoners." Harris explained.

"Wait, then what about the females?" Twilight asked.

"Well…" Harris was about to continue when he realized he didn't know his name when the kite from earlier whispered into his ear-hole and moved on "Twilight, as you can see among us…" he gestured to all his men, "We have no females, and since there is no female hawks in the surrounding kingdoms and such."

"So, what does that have to do with me and Nyra?" Gylfie asked with a frustrated face.

Harris stop and looked at her, but with a look of very dark intentions, "Well if you don't mind me,…" The kite whispered in his ear again, "Gylfie, answering a question with another question, had you or had you not ever been with a male before?"

"What? What kind of question is that? Of course I have been with a male! I am near a bunch of them right now!" Gylfie answered, quite confused with the question.

The hawk sniggered as he observed the small Elf Owl, "That not what I meant, maybe I should _specify_. Had you ever had a male _on top_ of you before? Had you ever had one bite in your neck while he…you know, the birds and the bees..."

The Elf Owl looked at him with a still confused expression, then, it hit her like a thousand bricks, as she looked at him mortified, Soren, Twilight, and Ezylryb giving a shocked look, Digger was staring agaped at him, and Kludd and Nyra giving him a disgusted grimace.

"OH GLAUX! YOU…YOU MEAN…" Gylfie screech partially, as she realized the hawk's intention.

"Yes, and judging by your reaction, I'll take that as a no." Harris gave a nod as he started pacing in front of the owls, "For years, we been going through those _seasons_ without having a female to mount, when one day, I saw an innocent female grass owl flying by, and I thought, 'hmmm, I wonder if it is possible for a hawk to co-populate with a owl?' (**I do not know, I don't wanna find out, and I think it isn't possible**) Well, after giving her a bit of persuasion…" The red-tailed bird hold up his left talon, "…a bit of reasoning…" he hold up his right talon, "and a whole lot of _pushing_, if you catch my drift…" The owls gave a disgusted expression, "I figured out that it was, although I kinda went a little hard and broke the poor thing." Harris finished with a mocking sad mug.

Ezylryb, greatly appalled by the outlaw's deed and view of females, with a shaky tone, scolded "My glaux, Harris…you had done many bad things in your lifetime, but this…" he paused, before donning a extremely angered expression as he started to screech, "is the most glaux-awful, dastardly crime you had ever committed! Have you no shame?!"

"Well, I felt bad about wrecking the girl, but the stuff that came before quickly snuffed that out. Soon after her, we had added raping owls to our lists of stuff we do, and trust me, it beats robbing and plundering any day, not to mention that hawks can't impregnate owls, so we have a good time without any possible obligations!" Harris Hawk gloated, with a sense of superiority.

"You disgusting pig!" Nyra spat with venom.

Harris looked at the beautiful white owl and laughed darkly, "What do you know? It is the infamous 'Diamond of St. Aegolius'."

"Diamond? What are you going on about?" Nyra asked, still retaining her glare at the smug hawk.

"It is a name we gave to one of the most gorgeous owls in all of the kingdom. You are the most desirable owl that most owls and hawks alike wish to have, but couldn't because a certain owl that scared the bejeezus out of us…" Harris and the other shuddered, but the hawk continued, "but now that owl is pushing daisies, I can finally claim what I ultimately desire." As the hawk took Nyra's right wing (which was released by the hawk that had her pinned) and was about to kiss it when Nyra yanked it out and smack him hard.

Harris went back, holding the cheek that was hit and then gave a chuckle as he looked at the white Barn Owl with seduction, and laughed "Quite feisty, I love that in a beautiful bird such as yourself."

Then Kludd, angered by the hawk's vulgarity, then screeched at him "What makes you think that our friends, let alone Nyra, would dare mate with you?"

The hawk gave a sinister smirk and said "What makes you think that…they have a _sprinking_ choice?" Then Fatal then behind the two females, and grabbed them with his talons as he did before, as Harris ordered "Fatal, please escort these two lovely ladies to my personal chamber."

The eagle answered "I am strong…I am handsome…I am FATAL!" as he went off with the two owls that were trying to get out.

"As for you five, have them sent to the brig." He ordered, as the hawks grabbed the five male owls, two of which (Digger and Kludd) were struggling as they screamed for the two owls that Fatal took. "As for me…" Harris said, as he licked his wing and slick his headfeathers, "I have two good-looking females waiting for me." Then the other hawks stared at him, and he then said "Fine, I let you boys have your run with Gylfie, but Nyra is all mine ya hear?!" as he went off…

* * *

A few minutes later, Fatal dropped Nyra and Gylfie inside a medium-sized chamber, (**think of what Ezylryb's hollow look like, minus all his stuff and such**) and before the two females could react, the eagle flew out the chamber and shut the doors tight behind him. Gylfie started trying to pull the door open, screeching "Please! Let us go! I don't want to do this!"

"Give it a rest, Gylfie, that big eagle is probably guarding the door, besides, I have no intention of even doing…that, with that sick bird." Nyra said, with a spat on the word 'bird'.

"What about what Harris did to all those female owls?" Gylfie shuddered, as she looked around the room. There were candles lit at corners of the chambers, and on the walls, there were pictures of hawks and owls alike…participating in _certain_ activities, and at the head of the room, there was a bust of a hawk's head, overlooking a patch of straw, where, she was dreading, the deed was to be performed.

"Look, I am sure that we can get out of here, all we need…" Nyra said with a determined face, before she and the Elf Owl heard a mechanism and noticed that a grate-covered hole in the ceiling (above the straw mat) opened up, and soon, hovering down, was none other than the devilish leader, floating down as he landed, and then laid on his side (in a model pose), and gave a smirk.

"Well, I hope you two are comfortable, because I would just hate it if one of you gals got a cramp while…you know…" He finished with a wink, and then went on to chuckle, "Not that it would change anything, I just don't want to hear any belly-aching, only soothing moans…"

His perverted thought train was interrupted when Nyra explained "Well, I must apologize, as me and my friend…" Gylfie looked at her weird, when the white Barn Owl called her friend, "are a bit under the weather, so we can't really perform well."

"Oh, please, that is one of the most commonly-used excuses in the book, and when I first saw you two, you looked fine. And don't even think about using the 'I like only females', 'there's two guys beside you to protect you', and the most annoying 'I am a male in female's feathers' excuse! I am one of the greatest genius in the owl kingdoms, so I will not be denied a well-earned 'good time' because of a damn virgin and a damn woman who thinks she's too good for me!" Harris finished in a angry screech.

Nyra and Gylfie gave each other a nervous glance as the hawk, who was becoming impatient, approached them menacingly. Gylfie asked "What do we do?" as she saw the leader.

The white Barn Owl was looking around the room when she saw the ceiling hole, still open, and she knew what to do. She turned to the hawk, and then whispered back to Gylfie, "Wait for a signal…" Gylfie was about to ask what when she saw the same opening and nodded.

Then, with a surprising change of expressions, her glare turn into a seductive smirk as she then started to inch towards the hawk, who was astonished by her change of attitude, with a sway of her tailfeathers, "You know, I never realized how handsome your face was, Harry…" she said in a false silky voice.

"_Harry?_" Gylfie thought, as the white Barn Owl was now close to the hawk.

"Oh…well…I usually go by Harris, but for someone as beautiful as you, I am willing to make an exception." Harris stuttered, as he usually was the one who made the move.

Nyra, knowing that her 'plan' was working like a charm, then started feeling the hawk's rugged feathers, and flirted "You are certainly are well-toned for a male, I am surprised no female hawk had chosen a strong bird such as yourself for a mate." Of course this was a lie, as the queen doubted that anyone, hawk or not, would mate with a cutthroat such as him willingly.

The male took a few steps back towards the mat and the statue of the hawk bust, as he started to moan as the female touched his feathers and said "What about that damn scarred-face bird? I think Kludd was his name."

It took all of the white Barn Owl's will to not smack him for insulting her true love interest, but seeing how she was under the opening, she asked dumbly, "Who's Kludd?" as she grip the hawk's face as she lean in for a kiss, and the male smirk as he was confident that he was about to score with a gorgeous female.

Then, she pulled her head back and swung her head against Harris's head, who then stumbled against the bust, and then screeched "NOW GYLFIE!"

Gylfie, not sure what to do, then charged at the hawk, and nailed him…in his sacred spot. The hawk let out a pained screech that instantly died out as he covered his crotch and his back hit the bust, which fell on his head and knocked him out.

Nyra, who was just expecting her to hit him in the side, was amazed by how much better the plan turned out, and then said to Gylfie as she rubbed her head, "Well, that worked out a lot better than I had hope." As she gave the Elf Owl a smirk.

The small owl returned a smile and then said "Let's get outta here before Prince Charming here wake up, and find Soren and the others." They both nodded as they flew out the opening in the ceiling and then went into the caves to find the boys.

* * *

While the things between Harris and the ladies were happening, Kludd was busy ramming the bars of the jail cell (a small hole in the cave wall) he, Soren, Digger, Twilight, and Ezylryb were occupying. He been doing so the moment they got sent in there. However, despite the new Metalbeak's constant abuse on the wooden bars, it wouldn't budge, and it didn't help that two hawk guards were playing commentary on the owl's attempts.

As Kludd rammed the bars again, one of the hawk (**played by David Spade, as that one guy in the Rules of Engagement and Kuzco in Emperor's New Groove**) said, "Oh, a swing and a miss, yet again, how many times is this now, Adam?"

The other hawk guard, the one known as Adam (**played by Adam Sandler…come on, you guys should know this one, he has a easy to recognize face**) laughed "I have no idea, Dave, I am guessing twenty to twenty-five, but it doesn't matter BECAUSE THE OWLS ARE STILL JAILBIRDS!" as he and Dave both laughed.

Kludd gave them menacing glares as he then rammed at the gate again, and Dave gasped "Wait, I felt something in that blow…oh, wait, no I didn't." as he then laughed again at the owl's failure.

The masked owl snarled as he prepared to ram again, before Ezylryb groaned, "Please, lad, you're only egging them on. We need to stop and think for a moment."

"How can I think, when that swine is doing glaux-know-what to Nyra, as well as Gylfie?" Kludd screeched, as he then rammed the bars again, prompting more chuckles from the guards.

"Well…wait, when did you care about Gylfie?" Soren asked, slightly confused.

The Pure One paused, and then said "No one…I mean, no one deserves to have _that_ done to them, and besides, I know someone who would be devastated by that, and _should_ be helping with breaking out!" as he glared at Digger.

"What? I have no idea what you are talking about." Digger played dumb, as he blushed a little.

The new Metalbeak suddenly clutched him by the throat and snarled "Don't play stupid! I know how you tried to get close to her back in the bog, and you were cuddling her like a doll when you were thinking like a kid, not to mention you were sleeping close to her, why can't you just admit that you love that small fry! Everyone knows you have it bad for Gylfie!"

Digger was trying to deny it, but the claw pressing on his throat was making it hard to do so, but then Twilight pulled Kludd off and said "That's enough, Kludd, fighting over why Digger being too damn stupid to confess his feelings will not solve anything." Digger was about to confront him on why he is stupid, and then Twilight continued, "I am sure Nyra and Gylfie are just fine, knowing them, they're probably found a way out and are looking for us."

"Oh, are we really going to take a chance on that? For all we know, Harris is probably mounting one of them right now!" Kludd screeched as he was shaking from the thought of Harris doing the unspeakable to Nyra, "and Digger…are you willing to wait while that sick hawk could be doing things to Gylfie, knowing that she is probably screaming as he is on top of her whispering damn insults into her ear, as he bite her neck, are you going to just stand there, giving him such chance to do that?" The Pure One taunted.

Digger was about to said no, when a horrible image entered his mind, a image of Harris doing such as Kludd described to Gylfie, and then as if Digger was there, Harris turned to him and said "Eat your heart out, this girl is mine." As his laugh along with Gylfie's moans echoed in Digger's mind as something inside his heart began to boil at a fierce temperature…

Then, meanwhile, since Kludd stopped, the hawks were talking about their new plaything, "So, what is your opinion on that one small chick?" Adam asked.

"Ya kidding? That girl is really inexperienced, not to mention she will probably be a loud screamer." Dave smugly answered.

"Yeah, I doubt she will be able to handle even a smaller hawk." Adam chuckled.

"Too bad she won't be able to satisfy any of us either way." Dave laughed.

Then Digger, then yelled out at them from inside the cell, already angry by Kludd's words and the sick thoughts of Harris and Gylfie, "HEY! DON'T YOU DARE TALK LIKE THAT ABOUT GYLFIE!"

"Digger, calm down!" Soren said, a little anxious, as he never saw Digger this upset.

"Oh ho! Look like we struck a nerve on an owl, Adam!" Dave darkly sneered.

"Indeed, Dave, what's the matter, is she your girlfriend?" Adam mocked.

"Not exactly! But that's not the point! You leave her alone, or I swear to Glaux…" Digger angrily threatened.

"Or what? Last we check, you guys are in jail, and we are out here, moments away from our break-time…" Dave boasted.

"Yeah, you know, I wasn't ecstatic about this new girl, but since this one guy likes her, I will take ultimate pleasure and showing her who boss! I bet she go like this," Adam bragged, and then said in a mock female voice, "Oh, harder, Adam, give it to me, you are much better than that one Burrowing Owl."

Digger's left eye twitched, and something snapped, as he then let out a fierce scream, as he charged at the barred door, and for some weird reason, whether it was weakened from Kludd's constant barging, or it was the mechanism within the tracker to defend the one he cared about that gave him the strength, the door shattered into pieces as Digger smashed into the two hawks, who were both equally surprised by the owl's power.

Dave was knocked out as soon as his back hit the wall, and Adam was struggling to get up as Digger just rose up, unscathed from smashing through wood, and said to him in a vicious tone "You will not touch Gylfie…not while I am still breathing…" as he then headbutt him, conking him out. Then, Digger scrunched his eyes together and said in his normal voice, "Ow…no one ever wins with a headbutt." (**Paul Blart: Mall Cop reference!**)

Back in the now-opened cell, the other owls were in shock as they watched Digger holding his head, and Twilight choked out "My glaux…"

"Didn't know he had it in him." Kludd agreed, slightly perturbed that a normal mild owl could have such raw potential.

"Well, love is such a powerful thing…either that, or he is a lot stronger than we thought." Ezylryb stated.

"Remind me to never make fun of Gylfie around him." Soren said; he wouldn't, but this was a reminder to not do so, ever.

Digger then looked back at the group, and said "Well? We gotta go find Nyra and Gylfie!" as he quickly flew into the tunnels, and the others gave a shrug as they followed him.

* * *

Nyra and Gylfie had only escaped Harris a few minutes ago, as they flew fast through the tunnels, looking for their comrades when they finally made it back to the main room where they had started.

"Okay…we are back in the main room, but where do we go from here?" Gylfie asked, a little panicky.

Then they heard voices coming from another tunnel, as all the sudden, Digger come bursting through at a high rate of speed as he accidentally run into Gylfie. Then the other four come flying in.

Kludd quickly hugged Nyra, before realizing what he was doing and said "Sorry, that was out of line." As Nyra gave him an understanding smile.

"DIGGER!" "GYLFIE" The Elf Owl and the Burrowing Owl said at the same time, as they hugged each other, before realizing the staring eyes of the other owls.

"Er...Did Harris hurt you?! I swear I'll kill him if he did" Digger screeched, trying to change the subject.

"He's serious." Twilight said simply. "He practically smash our cell door to pieces!"

Nyra shook her head and said "No, the only thing that got hurt was the hawk's dignity. Gylfie hit him where it count."

"Really, where?" Soren asked.

"The most prized possession of a male." Gylfie hinted at, with a smirk.

This prompted an 'oh', and a bigger 'OH' from the males, as Nyra laughed "Yeah, she did a lot better than I expected."

"Oh, you're being too modest, Nyra, the way you tricked Harris into thinking that you were seducing him, I honestly believed you were actually going to do it with him." The Elf Owl chuckled.

The males stared at them, and Kludd asked "When did you ladies hit it off?" The laughing instantly ceased, when both female owls looked at each other, then away from each other.

"It doesn't matter, we are back together, now let's get out of here, while the getting's good!" Ezylryb screeched.

"Oh, you aren't going anywhere…" A familiar ominous voice echoed through the room, as then hawks of all kind landed around them, and in front of the exit, landed Fatal, looking peeved as usual. Soren and the others looked behind them, as the crowd parted to reveal Harris, slowly limping in, with a bump on a head, holding his two talons together, and donning a furious expression.

"Of all the damn things for a woman to do…You, you had to wound me in my most sacred treasure." Harris whimpered as he looked down, "For that, I am going to mount you so hard, you won't know which way up." He viciously spat at Nyra, who was glaring at him.

"Are you sure that is a good idea?" A random hawk enquired, "Your…thing's black and blue," as he looked down.

"I AM AWARE OF THAT, THANK YOU! AND I DON'T CARE, ALL THAT MATTERS IS THAT I CLAIM THE DIAMOND FOR MY OWN! HAWKS! INTO BATTLE!" Harris yelled, as the hawks started to close in on them.

"Oh, you're mad? Well you are the first hawk on my list!" Digger yelled at him, angry at what he could have done to Gylfie.

Soren gulped as he took battle stance, but Ezylryb gave a smirk, "Relax, Soren, if I know Harris, and unfortunately, I do, he is all talk, but no bite."

"Yes, into battle, we fly!" Twilight declared as he charged at a group and sweep them with his lute (**For your information, he had the lute the whole time, I just don't feel like mentioning it all the time**).

(**NOTE: Play This Means War by Nickelback right now!**)

Soon, an epic battle royale ensued as hawks lunged at the owls; Twilight handled most of them by sweeping his lute and basically punching them out with one blow, Gylfie weaved and dodged around some hawks and used their size against them as they crashed against each other, Digger rammed into any hawk he seen (since he couldn't resort to his dirt-flinging), Ezylryb, Kludd, Nyra, and Soren utilized their battle claws as they collided metal with metal against each of the hawks.

Then Ezylryb and Nyra were back-to-back, surrounded by a few hawks, and Ezylryb asked "Never thought it would come to us working together, eh, Nyra?

Nyra smirked "Don't think it changes the fact that I still hate you for what happen with Metalbeak."

"Fair enough." Ezylryb simply stated, as Nyra and him quickly spun around and knocked out the owls the other owl was facing.

Harris merely chuckled as he limped through the battlefield, as he saw Gylfie, busy fending off some hawks, as he flexed his talons as he approached her, planning to finish what he intend to do…

Gylfie was panting, as she dodged another claw swipe, before she got pinned down. She looked up and gasped as she saw the leader, with a look of insanity and lust as he merely chuckled and said "Well, you are not Nyra, but hey, a female owl's a female owl."

Then he is blindsided by a brown blur, as Harris (while getting his back skidded across the ground) was rammed by Digger, who was back in his angry state, before both of them crashed into a wall. Digger got up and dusted himself off and said to himself "That's one problem taken care of."

Twilight was continuing his one-shotting tirade upon any unfortunate bird that cross his path, when the same kite from earlier was doing a charade of a wall, as he showed a smug smirk, thinking he couldn't be touched, but then got smacked on the head by his lute.

Soon, it was just Soren and Kludd against Fatal, who let out another "I am strong…I am handsome…I am FATAL!" as he took into a battle stance.

"Well, let's see how well this giant brute can handle the power of two, eh, Kludd?" Soren smirked.

"Quite right, brother." The older brother smiled back, as they charged at him.

The eagle charged as well as he swung his left claw down, but the brothers dodged and retaliate with headbutts (**think of this fight similar to that of Nathan Drake going fist-to-fist against a Brute in Uncharted 3**). The eagle got more angry as he swung his right wing, but the two were too quick as they weave under it and hit him in the abdomen. This pushed Fatal over the edge as he then drilled his beak into the ground where Kludd and Soren were, but he missed and got his beak stuck (**Like the Helmaroc King in Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker**).

All the owls were panting, but were happy, as all the hawks were defeated, Fatal was busy getting his beak out, and Harris, as he got back up (and groan as his bruised you-know-what started hurting again) and saw all his men were incapitated and Ezylryb, looking his way, gave a smirk "Well, Harry, your hawks are still as weak as they were years ago, the giant eagle was a mild improvement, but your soldiers lacked strength and finesse. Since we are merciful, we'll let you go." He said to him and then asked his fellow owls, "Right, comrades?" All the owls nodded..

Slightly peeved, Harris flew to the front of the exit and screeched "Another day, Lyze! Those ladies…" he gestured to Gylfie and Nyra, who were glaring at him, "…will be mine! Just wait and see!"

Then Fatal was able to pull his beak out, and said "I am strong…I am handsome…I…"

"SHUT UP!" Harris interrupted, as he then chucked a rock at his head. Unfortunately, it was enough to daze the golden eagle, as he fell on Harris and then dropped out the exit, as Harris screamed.

Gylfie gasped, when Ezylryb reassured "Don't worry, the best and worst thing about Harris is…no matter what happens to him, he always come back for more. Now, shall we proceed to a safer location?"

The rest of the band nodded as they flew out the cliffside and out of the ravine, on the winds of victory as they triumphed over the bloody hawks, but one more obstacle stand in their way before Kludd can meet with Skarmoris once more, the Labyrinth Peaks…

**A/N: No hawks and eagles were harmed in the making of this chapter…and now done is probably my most controversial chapter. This chapter had a couple of questionable material, here we had sexual references and terminology, such as 'mounting' and names for the male's 'parts', mention of rapes (none happened in this chapter, but still…), and earlier, we had a bullying scene, which revealed that Kludd and Nix ran into each other way before St. Aeggies. I will not rate this story M, as I was careful in talking about 'certain parts' and this is the only time where there would be lots of sexual reference. However, we do meet two OCs that will probably make more appearance in possible sequels: Harris Hawk, a suave yet malicious red-tailed hawk who is a player/rapist, he is another personal favorite OC of mine, and for him, I gave him a sexy voice (Simon Baker). Then, we meet Fatal, a golden eagle and Harris' muscle bird, who only says one sentence repeatedly, his dialogue was inspired by one of my friends' class video for Spanish class, who in the video said "Yo soy fuerte, Yo soy guapo, Yo soy FATAL!", which I then translate into Fatal's catchphrase. These two will return in future fics, so I hope you at least enjoyed them. I hope I didn't offset anyone with this chapter, as I am against bullying and raping, and I didn't mean to make light of them, and I hope I didn't OOC'ed Digger, I just wanted to make him into a owl that would, when angered, move a mountain to save the love of their life (such as Gylfie). The next chapter will take a while to get up, but I will say this, it will feature all of our owl friends back at Ga'Hoole, as well as owls back at the Pillar of Supremacy.**

***cast, kettle: a group of hawks; parliament: a group of owls**

**POLL NOTICE: In case you had wondered, I paired Twilight with a ?, that ? is actually going to be one of two females back at Ga'Hoole. The two females are none other than the black mamba Mrs. P, and the short-eared owl Strix Struma. Mrs. P was originally going to be my only option, but my good friend Vegeta12345 brought up Strix, who is a warrior-owl. So now, I am having a poll, who should Twilight be with…Mrs. Plithiver? Or Strix Struma? It is mandatory that you vote in these polls, as I can't really continue on till I see who the people want. If you don't feel like doing the polls, then put your answer in your reviews, since I need a lot more reviews!**

**_Artwork stuffs are appreciated_**

**NOTE: I was looking at the LotG: OoG category and sorted it by number of reviews, it turns out that this story is now the most reviewed story of the whole category, and THIS IS MY FIRST STORY! THANK YOU SO MUCH!  
**


	12. For The Family Back Home

**A/N: Okay, chapter twelve! This will mark my last chapter before school begins, so the chapters may take longer, so I hope you will bear with me. This chapter will play out a little differently, as we will first meet our seven heroes, then we will then visit all our important and non-important characters! Well, enjoy! (Note: In this story, Mrs. Plithiver is not blind, I am going off what other authors wrote about her, bluecatcinema included)**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mention.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle**

* * *

Chapter Twelve: For The Family Back Home

~**The Band**~

Soon after they had defeated the hawks back at the ravine, it was almost morning yet again, and the band had stopped at a tall pine tree, as they were laughing and reminiscing over the past events that had transpired.

"Boy, we really kicked some tailfeathers back there, didn't we?" Soren chuckled.

"You're damn right we did! Twilight was swatting them like flies!" Kludd smirked as he looked at Twilight.

"Oh ho, I'm glad you thought so, but it was Digger who literally took down twenty hawks, not to mention Harris himself." Twilight modestly chortled as he then glanced at Digger, "It was like you had an inner hagsfiend within you!"

"Well, I guess I never knew I was a fighter till a few hours ago!" Digger smiled, as he stole a glance at Gylfie, who was smiling as well as she remembered how he had saved her from Harris. Somehow, they both knew the true reason for Digger's sudden adrenaline, as well as everyone else. "It was Gylfie that truly gave the coup de grace to Harris." He complimented the Elf Owl.

"Well, I felt a little guilty in doing it, but the pleasure of knowing that he won't be able to perform for a while snuffed that out." Gylfie said ironically in the same way Harris had said earlier.

"Quite right, Gylfie." Ezylryb sniggered, "Harris cherished his…you know…like a true gentleman cherish his lady, with what you did, the hawk's ego will probably take months to restore, if not years. However, the most exemplary fighters were Nyra and Metalbeak, I got to say, you two had improved over the past ten months, I am confident that if you were still leaders of the Pure Ones, we would have a challenge on our wings."

"Oh you are being too kind, Lyze, you yourself had shown that you still have skill." Nyra said with merriment. "But I must admit, you had trained Soren quite well. It was truly amazing how he and Kludd worked together to beat that giant lummock."

"Why thank you, Nyra, I swear, it was like old times when me and Kludd teamed up…" Soren said before realizing that he said Kludd, and quickly said "Sorry, I meant…"

"Forget about it," Kludd said with shrug of a wing, "I guess with all that had happen the night before, I was really uptight, but given all we been through, what with a snake and a bunch of hawks and…_him_ and all, I suppose I could stand to be called by my old name, as long as Digger don't use it as part of that one phrase again." He finished with a slight stare at the Burrowing Owl.

"Fair enough, I guess it wasn't that funny." Digger smirked, and then realized something, "You know, I just realize something…we are all actually enjoying each other company!"

The band went silence for a bit, but Nyra then said "I suppose you are right, we been so focused on our 'situation' that we put aside our differences…"

However, due to Digger jinxing it, there was an awkward silence. Even though they had made a great team back there, there was no changing what had went down a year back. Nyra didn't know what to think of Soren, she hated him for killing her love, but she couldn't help but feel a sense of responsibility for him, as he was her love's brother, and as for Ezylryb...she was quite befuddled by the old owl's willingness to let go of grudges, as she and Metalbeak were responsible for his artificial talon, as Metalbeak held on to what the Screech Owl did to him…

Ezylryb was confused as well, he always had a dislike toward Pure Ones, especially Nyra and Metalbeak, as they went way back to the Battle of the Ice Claws, but now he was having a different opinion of her, she is actually quite nice to be around when she isn't condescending or trying to kill you.

Soren feared the Pure Ones ever since he heard about the Lyze of Keil and Metalbeak, hated them when he actually met them, and when he killed Metalbeak, he knew that he did what was right; however, when it came to Nyra, he held a bitter resentment towards her and personally held her responsible for what Kludd become…but there was no denying that she had taken great care of him and that she hadn't abandoned him when this Skarmoris had taken the reins as king…maybe there was more to the white barn owl than meet the eyes.

Digger and the others were perturbed by the newfound silence, they weren't as deeply connected to Kludd and Nyra as Soren and Ezylryb were. Gylfie was the only one out of them to have met Nyra before their fight at St. Aegolius and she was easily intimidated by the owl's stature and threatening glare, but later on, she saw her as another Otulissa, a prissy owl who couldn't stand to dirty her talons; of course she no longer held any resentment towards the short-eared owl as they buried the hatchet (**see Ruffled Feathers**). But, since the ravine, Gylfie saw her in a new light, as she was clever and strong, a deadly combination, but that didn't change the fact that she shouldn't be trusted…or does it?

Eventually, the silence was broken when Kludd asked Soren "So, how were things back at Ga'Hoole?" Soren gave him a confused look, and then he continued, "We told you last night how our year back at St. Aeggies was, so it is fair if you told us how the Guardians been for the ten months."

"Oh, I guess you are right." Soren nodded, and then said "Well, like the Pure Ones, we also had a dry spell of events, it seems that defeat had struck fear into other villains, no offense, Nyra."

"None taken." Nyra simply stated.

"We have a few new arrivals, such as Alice." Soren said, as Ezylryb stiffed a little as she was mentioned, "and you had met…LaRoche." He finished with a grimace

"I can't believe the Guardians had someone like that buffoon replace Allomere," Nyra sneered, "Sure, Allomere was a pompous oaf as well, but at least he had class." She admitted, as she now regretted sending those bats upon him back then, but like her husband said, 'There can only be one king'.

"Come now, he is a valued mem…" Ezylryb tried to say before bursting in laughter as he held his gizzard, and then said between laughs, "Sorry…I can never say that with a straight face." The others merely smirked as they too cannot say that LaRoche was the 'best' thing to happen to the tree. "But, in all seriousness, he does know how to run things when it comes down to it, which I guess is the main reason Boron chosen him."

"Well, he got the part of hating Pure Ones down real well." Kludd sarcastically spat, "By the way, what was your deal with him, Soren? I noticed you and the others were glaring at him back at the meeting." He asked, really mystified.

"Well…" Soren was about to answer, when Ezylryb stopped him.

"The worse part about LaRoche was that he never knows when to leave well enough alone. The moment he heard Soren's version of what happened in that fight, he was already nitpicking it for errors." The senior guardian grumbled.

"Er…so? Soren isn't one for exaggerating stories." Kludd merely said.

"He lied about what happen to you, lad, why you think no one had figured out who you really are?" The old owl said, "LaRoche never liked Soren the moment he met him, in fact, he didn't like anyone who was bigger than him."

Kludd paused, when he stared at Soren yet again, as he looked away, and then he realized… "So that is why you were out on that perch last night, because he…"

"Knew I was hiding something, fortunately, no one paid heed to him…but I now know that I can't keep a secret forever" Soren said with absolute, "That is why, when all this is over, I am telling everyone who you are, Kludd."

This prompted another tense silence as Kludd processed what he said, and returned to his sad, bitter expression. Digger, hoping to change the subject then asked, "So…how do you think things are back at Ga'Hoole right now?"

Soren, still shaken from what he just said to his brother, merely shrugged and said "I don't know, Otulissa must be worried sick about me, as well as ma, da, and Eg." Kludd felt a bit of pain when he heard those words.

Gylfie then said, "The king and queen must be worried as well. The fate of the kingdoms may as well be at hand."

"I am sure the elders are quite perturbed about this, well except LaRoche, he was never one to let a possible pandemonium get him down, that ought to be his best quality…" Ezylryb stated, as his thought suddenly wandered to that of Alice, as she was probably worrying about him as well.

Nyra noticed the looks on Soren and Ezylryb's face, one that matched that of concern for a loved one, the one she been donning ever since what happen to Metalbeak, as she said, "It is hard…knowing that you are out here risking your life, while the ones we cared about are at home, fearing for our safety." The feeling she had when it came to goodbyes and jokes, returned for the third time, but she shook it off once more as she continued, "We all have someone to fight for, whether it is family, a crush, or mainly everyone, it's only a matter of why you do it."

Those words lit a spark in the other owls, as their once-low view of her faded away as they then thought of who they were fighting for.

"_Otulissa, ma, da, Eglantine, the tree…Kludd…" _Soren thought.

"_Gylfie…_" Digger said in his mind.

"_Digger…_" Gylfie pondered.

"_The Guardians, the owl kingdoms, Alice…_" The Lyze of Keil said within his heart.

Kludd was in deep thought of who he was fighting for, of course Nyra was the top of the list, as well as Metalbeak, but then his old family crossed his mind, "_Why are they in my head? Is it possible that…that…no, you are Metalbeak…you must stay focused, you are fighting for your late master's honor and Nyra, that's all that matters_" He mentally stated with determination.

Twilight was also pondering, but not in the same way the new Metalbeak was, as he had two females on his mind, "_Dammit…I never thought this would happen to me, having to choose who to fight for_...right,_ I do it for **her**…_" he said to himself.

Nyra herself was thinking of whom she was fighting for, as she thought of the ones she had left behind as well as the ones with her, "_I had burned many bridges in my lifetime, but all I know is that I have to keep strong, for Metalbeak, both old and new._" She spoken in her mind, as she looked at Kludd and, as if as a trick of the mind, Metalbeak in the same spot.

Suddenly, the trains of thoughts were interrupted as Digger yawned, and Ezylryb, seeing that the sunlight was peering through the trees, said, "We better get some sleep, as we have one more location to get through." Everyone nodded as they all faded off to dreamland, however, during their talk, many others conversed…

* * *

~**Otulissa and Strix Struma~**

Otulissa was busy doing last-minute training under Strix Struma, a short-eared owl of the Warrior chaw, as she looked at the sky, sighing as she thought of Soren, before she got hit by the elder owl.

"Oh come on, Otulissa, you'll never going to win a fight if you can't keep focus." Strix said in a frustrated tone, as she picked her student back up.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, it's just..." Otulissa couldn't finish as she looked to the sky again, and Strix immediately understood her lack of attention.

"You're worried about that one Barn Owl, aren't ya?" Strix asked, as she knew that her student had feelings for him, and she could relate...; the short-eared owl nodded, "Look, lass, I can see where you're coming from, Soren is an excellent student and warrior, made me wish that he was training under yours truly, but he has three of his friends to back him up, not to mention he has the old Lyze of Keil behind him as well, and I am sure the Pure Ones, as evil as they may be, aren't willing to let him die." Strix smirked with confidence.

"The Pure Ones are what I am afraid of!" Otulissa stammered, "Soren may be excellent, but he can sometimes let his guard down, and knowing _Metalbeak_, he will strike him at that moment, if not that prissy woman Nyra!"

"You are not giving Soren enough credits, and you think too little of our enemies, they may be horrible, but they know that Soren and the others are their only hope of regaining their kingdom...and let's face facts, you are just as prissy as Nyra." the older short-eared owl rebutted all in one sentence.

Otulissa was about to deny it, when she remembered her spat with Gylfie a year earlier, it was after being punished to sort out the archives they were able to finally get along (by Soren's expense), however, she thought of something and asked "Hey ma'am, are you in love with someone?

Strix quickly froze, and then said in her mind "_Well, it wouldn't hurt to tell her_." "I do have my eyes on someone, a certain Gray Owl..." She confessed.

"Oh, I am so sorry! I didn't know you liked Allomere..." Otulissa quickly apologized.

"What?! No!" Strix Struma quickly denied, sure, she was once attracted to that owl, but he was always so serious and uptight, not to mention he was a traitor, so that ship had long sunk. "The owl I am talking about is Soren's friend, Twilight!" she corrected.

"Twilight? Hmm, I guess any lady would be quite infatuated with him, such as strong owl as him." Otulissa admitted.

"It's not just his strength, it's the way he smiles, his personality, his laugh, and more importantly, his melodious songs." Strix blushed at all the good features of his.

Otulissa looked at her and merely smiled, as it reminded her of when she and Soren first met, as they taught him and the others about the chaws. Over the year, her and Soren were actually getting closer and closer, and according to a book on owl couples' union, a year after the beginning of a relationship is a primal time when the male usually ask for the female's talon in marriage. Otulissa always dreamt of Soren proposing loads of times, and the wonderful night that would follow the wedding...she quivered at the thought of it.

"Eh...Otulissa?" Strix asked, snapping the younger short-eared owl out of her reverie, "I think we been training long enough, you should get some sleep, and hopefully we can pick up where we left off tonight."

Otulissa nodded at her hero's suggestion (As Soren's hero was Ezylryb, her hero was Strix Struma) as she took one last glance at the morning sky and prayed "_Please, Soren, come home safely_..."

* * *

~**LaRoche, Pip, and Alice~**

"A little to the right!...no, your other right!...Back a bit!...No, too much!" LaRoche ordered. After seeing the band off, LaRoche was busy seeing to repairs and renovations as when he wasn't an official, he was basically an architect for the tree. Right now, he was helping a great-horned owl and a great gray owl (**not Allomere or Twilight**) put up a chandelier in the main hall, who in turn were struggling as it was heavy.

"BOSS! This thing is heavy, does it really matter where we adjust it?" One of them complained.

"YES!" LaRoche answered in a mock whiny voice, "For months I had that thing worked on, everything must be how I envisioned it. And dammit, I envision it a little to the left!" He screeched, as the big owls moved it, "With this baby up...a little more." The owls moved it a little more, "Those big featherbrains ought to give me the respect I deserve!" (**Lord Shen reference! The part about the chandelier, I mean**)

As he smirked, he noticed a certain Whiskered Screech Owl female coming his way, and addressed "Alice! It's nice to see you come and marvel at my masterpiece!"

Alice looked at the hanging ornament and said "I got to say, LaRoche, it really brings life to the room...er, what is it?"

The Elf Owl drooped and answered. "Well, it's what the Others used to call _a chandelier_, a fancy do-hickey with candles all around it, basically, one giant candle!"

"Ah...looks like you put a lot of work into putting this up for everyone," Alice smirked.

"Well, you know me, always thinking of the people!" LaRoche lied, as he had no intentions of telling her his 'intentions'

"But boss, didn't you just say you had this made to gain respect from the 'big featherbrains'?" The great gray owl asked.

"Great-horn, smack the dumb one for me," LaRoche ordered with a fierce glare, and the great-horned owl hit the great gray owl.

Alice rolled her eyes and sighed "Typical LaRoche, always out for himself."

The small owl took that as an insult and said "You listen you damn hag! Ever since I got here, everyone made fun of my size, there were jokes about me being smaller than a yarped-up pellet, owls pretending that they can't hear me! I am LaRoche of the great Southern Kingdoms, one of the best politics known to owlkind, and I always sought for what is right!"

"Oh really, does bullying a young one about his story back at the feast sound right?" Alice glared at the small owl.

"_Sorry_, if you and your damn 'friend' Ezylryb refused to see that boy was hiding something! Something had happen to the kid's brother, and I am sure he isn't dead!" LaRoche spat.

Alice looked at him with astonish and in a shaky tone, said "How could you question the boy?! He slain Metalbeak, one of the greatest threat to the owl kingdoms! Yet, you treat him like scum!"

LaRoche darkly chuckled "Please, he may had killed an owl, but all he did was giving the next owl in line power over the Pure Ones! The fact he is keeping something from us makes him unreliable!"

"What proof do you have of this, LaRoche? All you have are merely circumstantial evidence, nothing solid, and trust me, the day you do is the day we have Pure Ones become Guardians!" Alice rebutted.

Then, a pip sound started to emanate in the hall, as Pip started hopping towards the two.

"Oh great, what does the annoying 'pipper' want?" LaRoche groaned.

When Pip approached the two, the Little Owl tapped Alice, as she lowered her ear-hole to listen to his whisper, and then said, "As much as I would _love_ to continue this discussion, I have to attend to a few owls back at the infirmary." With that, she left.

The Elf Owl was merely grumbling to himself, "I swear, I'll make you eat those damn words." as he returned his view to the chandelier, then he noticed something on the ground, he approached it and gasped...it was a feather, more importantly, a Barn Owl feather. LaRoche would have thought it was Soren's when he 'crashed' in, but he noticed it was a darker brown one...much like that of the new Metalbeak...

"_Hmm, could it be? This feather looks similar to that of that of Metalbeak, who in turn, looks somewhat like Soren...oh glaux, I think I found my proof!_" LaRoche gleefully thought as he was about to head off, but then thought "_Wait, what does this prove? That the owl had feathers similar to Soren? No, I need to do a little research, and I know the guy to help me...Glaux, why am I still talking in my head?_" LaRoche shook it off.

"PIP! I REQUIRE YOUR ASSISTANCE!" LaRoche screeched after Pip, who was about to leave, but unfortunately, the Elf Owl's voice was enough to break one of the chain holding the chandelier up, and the whole object fell to the ground with a loud 'CRASH!'. LaRoche looked back at the now destroyed chandelier with a twitching right eye, and screeched "SON OF A GLAUX-DAMN..."

* * *

~**Eglantine and Mrs. Plithiver~**

LaRoche's loud screech echoed throughout the tree, but fortunately, the last word was twisted by the wind that blew through the tree and was misheard all around. Eglantine, who was in the library with Mrs. P, heard the last word and asked her nurse maid, "Mrs. P, what's a 'bidget'?"

"I have no idea, dear, no idea at all." Mrs. P answered, quite confused with the screech.

The two, while awaiting Soren's return, they decided to pass the time by finding a book to read. Fortunately the search didn't take so long as Mrs. P found one about Eglantine's favorite Guardians story, the Lyze of Keil and Metalbeak in the Battle of Ice Claws.

"Here we are, dear, one of your favorite story." The elderly snake smiled.

Normally, Eglantine would have cheered as she and Soren always enjoyed the story, but her mind was elsewhere. She remembered what her brother said about the new Metalbeak, "_He is not the Metalbeak from the stories...think of him as a...different Metalbeak._"

He was right, this new Metalbeak look a lot less menacing than the one Soren and Eazelly (Ezylryb) had described before, and for reasons unknown, she actually felt a bit of pity and sadness for this Metalbeak, as well as a connection to him, as his voice and his body reminded her so much of...her brother Kludd. She gasped at the thought, could it be that her dead brother could actually be that Metalbeak? She even went further into her thoughts "_Why would Kludd continue to be mean? Is he...sad?_"

"Uh...Eglantine, dear, are you alright?" Mrs. P asked with concern when Eglantine didn't response to her finding the book.

Snapped out of her thoughts, Eglantine answered "Yes, I was just thinking.", then she asked "Mrs. P, do you think bad guys can be good guys?"

"Bad guys...what are you talking about, little one?" The elderly snake enquired.

"I mean, can someone who had been mean can become a good person, if he was sorry for what he had done?" The Barn owlet asked.

Mrs. P was surprised by this kind of question, and was unsure of how to answer it...however, she can sense that it had something to do with the new Metalbeak and the female owl that came to them for help. Although she didn't say anything, she had an odd feeling about him, a _familiar_ feeling that prompted her to think of Kludd, she sighs inwardly thinking about him, he was a good child and a good older brother to Soren, but as he gotten older, he and Soren started to grow apart, in fact, he grown away from his father and mother, and even Eglantine. "_That owl...could he be?_" She thought, but then shook the thought because that was false hope talking...

"Well, dear..." the elderly snake said, about to answer the child's question, "it is indeed possible, for some people aren't truly evil at heart, they are just hurting, and they hurt other people, hoping it would make them forget about the pain in their heart, but one day, a person will realize that in order to ease their pain, they must confront the source of it, and only till then, will they truly realize what cause their pain, and the hurting will truly stop."

Unfortunately, Eglantine was slightly confused by it, and Mrs. P chuckled, "Yes, if that owl is truly sorry for what he had done, he can be a friendly owl."

"Ahh...so could we read the story please?" She asked. Mrs. P warmly chuckled as she began reading her the book...

* * *

~**Noctus, Marella, and Alice~**

Alice just arrived at the infirmary after getting Pip's message when she saw a familiar Barn Owl couple, Noctus and Marella, parents of the barn owl that her crush was mentoring,

"Oh, thank glaux you got here, Alice, my husband was trying to train with the other owls and his back gave out." Marella explained, as Noctus rolled his eyes.

"Come on, dear, it was just a cramp in the back, nothing serious." Noctus shrugged off, as he rubbed his back.

"I see, well, let me take a look," Alice said, "Please, flip over on the mat." she ordered, as she and Marella helped flipped the male Barn Owl onto a patch of straw, and then Alice cricked her wings (**you know, like stretching your hands**), and said to Marella, "You might want to cover your ear-holes."

"Cover my...AUGH!" Noctus asked, before getting his answer as the Screech Owl started to fix his back (**Open Season reference!**), and he was feeling a lot of pain as Alice re-located his back.

As she did so, and while Noctus gave random squeaks of pain, Marella asked, "So, the tree had been talking about you and the Lyze of Keil, is it true you two are in a relationship?"

"Relationship? Oh no, me and Ezylryb are just friends, although he is charming..." She said, as she cricked another backbone while Noctus squawk, "has quite the rugged look..." Noctus yelped, "...not to mention that he is quite the gentleman." as Noctus let out a screech.

"Oh...sweet...mercy..." The pained Barn Owl panted, as his back stopped hurting a little.

"Right...are you sure? Because, I heard that you never gave your trusty satchel to anyone, yet you did so willingly for Ezylryb." Marella enquired.

Alice blushed, as she walked onto Noctus' back and started cricking it again with her talons, "Well, I can trust him, he is a decorated war-hero, and they might need it, given the danger they have to overcome." as Noctus let out yet another agonizing screech.

"Are you sure you know what you doing?" Noctus doubted, as he felt sharp claws grabbed into his back once more.

"Of course I do!" Alice replied, a little insulted, "This technique guarantees a healthy back!" as she then stomped on one back of his back, prompting another comedic yelp. Then she got off him as Noctus then realize his back stop hurting and got up as well.

"Wow...thanks, Alice" Noctus thanked as he stretched a little.

"My pleasure, although I must ask...you mentioned that Soren was your son, right?" Alice asked.

"Why yes, number two of three." Noctus nodded, as he then sadly remember 'number one'.

"Number two? The only children I had seen of yours were Soren, and that little sweet darling Eglantine." The elderly Whiskered Screech Owl pointed out, with a hidden smile remembering the little Barn owlet.

"Well, we used to have our eldest son, Kludd...but when he and Soren were both taken by the Pure Ones, he was captured and held against his will and when Soren and his friends went to save the Guardians, Kludd was able to break free, but he died trying to protect Soren, as he went off to save Ezylryb. Kludd's body was never found." Marella said, with tears in her eyes.

Alice on the other hand was shocked by this sad story, but, LaRoche's theory about Soren not telling the truth started to settle in her mind. When she first heard Soren's story back at the feast, she couldn't help but notice Soren avoiding the parts including his brother. Although she wasn't exactly paying attention as she was busy pondering her feelings for Ezylryb, but...she couldn't finish the thought, as she just ignored it.

"I am deeply sorry, I did not mean to open any scars," She apologized.

"Oh, it's not your fault, you didn't know," Noctus shrugged off, "but I think I take my wife back to our hollow..." as he took his wife's wings as they were about to fly off.

"Okay, just remember to take it easy, Noctus, your back still need time to recover." Alice warned.

Noctus gave a nod, as he and his crestfallen wife flew off, and Alice sighed, as she then looked to the sky and thought "_Please take care of Soren, Lyze, because if he dies, his parents won't survive._"

* * *

~**Nix, Jatt, and Jutt**~

At the Pillar of Supremacy, General Nix, followed by his two lieutenants Jatt and Jutt were busy overlooking over the remnants of the original Pure Ones' army, and the grass owl smiled with malice as he saw the anger and viciousness within each owl's eyes, while Jatt and Jutt look with uncertainty at them.

"Uh...Nix? Are these owls alright? Because I am not liking the looks in their eyes." Jatt enquired

"I am with you, I liked it better when little Metalbeak (**Kludd**) was running the show, at least when he did it, it wasn't so...tense." His cousin admitted

"What?!" Nix turned around to glare at them, "You are saying that you would rather be dirt than lieutenants? We were stomping grounds for that damn owl, but now, we are commanders of possibly the strongest army known to owl kind! What happen to the owls that were against the idea of him being leader?!"

Jatt and Jutt gave anxious glances to each other, "We got used to him, and I doubt he would had all our friends and allies turn on each others like dogs!" Jatt screeched.

"And Skarmoris scares the crud out of us!" Jutt finished.

Nix then clutched both owls' neck and brought their heads together and said "You listen and you listen good! THIS is our new life, serving Lord Skarmoris, and I will hear NOTHING of this crud any longer! As of now, you will not even mention that damn owl's name, hell, you won't even think about him, I DO MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!" Nix finished with a scream.

"Yes sir!" The cousins replied.

"Now...let's get these soldiers to work..." Nix said with an evil smirk, as he and the Long-Eared Owls went down to meet them.

* * *

~**Skarmoris**~

The evil lord himself was busy doing the same thing as he was before, watching the raging seas crash against each other as more lightnings clashed in the skies, as a strong sea breeze blew through his feathers. He wasn't enjoying it though, as his mind was contemplating on how he would execute Kludd, "_Well, I could do many things, I could rip his wings off, and gut him, or I can tear his beak off and gouge his eyes, or better yet...I could castrate him and watch him bleed out._" He thought as he let out an evil chuckle.

However, the servant (**ch 1/2**) came in and addressed "Uh, Lord Skarmoris, there is an issue that need to be addressed, one concerning the corpses that are now stinking up the training grounds."

Skarmoris, turning around to look at the servant, merely said, "Of course...see to it that comes feeding time, each corpse is served to each owl."

The servant's eyes went wide and he screeched "WHAT! YOU WANT US TO EAT OUR OWN KIND! THAT'S CANNIBALISM! THAT IS GLAUX-DAMN SICK!"

Unfortunately, he forgot who he was talking to, and soon, he found his barn owl body pinned down by one of his new leader's talon as he looked into his eyes with cold, dark, silver eyes, and he said "You dare question me? Lord Skarmoris, your king?" he questioned

The barn owl servant was in horror as he started to panic, "No sir, it just...just...OH GLAUX! PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!" he pleaded.

Skarmoris, seeing the fear in the owl's eyes, smirked as he explained, "Don't you see that cannibalism is proven to make an owl stronger? Feeding on other owls increases your life longevity, your muscle mass, your speed, although it does take away weak-willed owls' ability to feel anything or say anything for that matter, that is what happen to Biggs and Wedge when they started feeding. It will probably won't happen to Nix, as he proven to be a strong-willed one, however."

"But...but, these were our brethren, our family, our comrades...doesn't any of that matter?" The servant whimpered.

"None at all." Skarmoris laughed, "You know what? I think your services as a servant is no longer required...besides it was proven that when an owl eats another living owl, the effects are much more cumulative."

The servant's heart stop when he heard those words, and then Skarmoris' helm opened up...(**like how Giratina's origin forme's beak open up**)

If you were happen to be outside the doors to Skarmoris' chamber, you could hear a blood-curdling scream as well as a body being torn to shreds and eaten. Hearing the scream, the scout (**ch 7**) quickly flew into the chamber and asked "Milord, is everything all right..." he stopped when he saw a remnants of an owl and saw a bit of what seems to be a heart in his king's helm's opened beak, not to mention the floor around him and the helm itself was bloodied up, as he swallowed it.

"Yes...I was just enjoying a early-morning snack, do you have anything to report?" He addressed the scouting barn owl nonchalantly.

"No, sir...was he the servant?" The scout asked, not seeming to care. The king nodded. "Huh...well, I guess you are right, there is no room for the weak within this army." as the scout darkly chuckled as he flew off.

Skarmoris smiled, "_By Glaux, I think he got it!_" as he returned to his normal past-time, as his two soldiers are probably off feeding on an unfortunate passerby in territory, and he himself gave an insane laugh that echoed throughout the skies.

* * *

~**Samuel**~

The snowy owl woke up with a start, as he was perched upon a higher branch than the band, watching over them as he was the night before, and was panting, as he felt the death of that poor servant and the darkness emanating from the masked owl's heart.

He looked upon both Soren and Kludd, who were both sleeping uneasily, and frowned, "I fear for both your safety, if you both cannot defeat this darkness, the world as we know it will cease to exist..." With that, Samuel faded away once more into the sky, as the prophecy he had once foretold was two nights from coming to fruition...

* * *

**A/N: Sweet mercy of god, what is wrong with me? Last chapter, we had sexual references, including to that of rapes, child abuse, and bullying, and now in this chapter, we have cannibalism...man, the way I make villains is scary. Dark stuff aside (maybe not), here we had met up with all our important/non-important characters back at the tree, where there is drama, humor, and foreshadowing of the near future. Then, we meet up with our Pure Ones, where we learn that our two long-eared owls cousins still have a shred of loyalty to their old leaders, making them a lot less evil than Nix, who probably became as ruthless as Kludd did in Mic O'Malley 'Skies of Darkness'. Then we meet up with Skarmoris, who is revealed to be a cannibal, as well as why our two Barn Owls Biggs and Wedge are mute, yet strong, and we bid adieu to that one servant (sorry, but he wasn't doing it for me), and see how Skarmoris intend to make his army unstoppable (this is actually based off a enemy in Final Fantasy XII that use Cannibalize to become stronger). No, Eglantine and Mrs. P don't think that Metalbeak is Kludd, they just have a feeling, they won't find out till in a few chapters, and I may have hinted at something with Otulissa and Soren, as well as introduced Strix Struma (who made no appearances whatsoever till this chapter) and as I said earlier, would be paired with Twilight; either her or Mrs. P will. I also had a little fun writing about our grouchy owl LaRoche and Little Owl Pip, especially the chandelier crash (hehehe...), and I also made a major hint at EzylrybxAlice (but I bet you guys knew that already), and a humorous interaction between Alice, Noctus, and Marella which turn into a sad story. We also met our snowy owl friend Samuel once more, as he worries for our heroes' safety. I apologize for any errors or OOCness, and I hope you guys stick around for chapter 13, as we tackle the Labyrinth Peaks...READ AND REVIEW!**

**POLL NOTICE: Right now, we are a tie, 1 vote for Strix, 1 vote for Mrs. P, please do vote, as this will play a major importance in the end of the story, Polls will end Sunday!**

**Artwork stuffs are appreciated**


	13. The Band and The Peaks

**A/N: Okay guys, it is Saturday here in the USA, finished my first week of school, and now we are ready for the very last obstacle of our journey, the Labyrinth Peaks. It should be noted that the puzzle within this story was inspired by a puzzle of the Lost Cave in Pokemon Firered and Leafgreen (It is on Five Island) as well as the Desert in Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time, if you know it, good, if not, you should be fine either way. Let the chapter begin! NOTE: Do any of you guys find the chapter's name redundant? As for the polls, the winner of the polls is...announced in the middle of this chapter! (LOL! U MAD? [Trollface])**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mention.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle**

* * *

Chapter Thirteen: The Band and the Peaks

It was only two nights ago when Kludd and Soren had 'bumped' into each other in Ga'Hoole, with Kludd asking the Guardians for their help in eradicating this new threat known as Skarmoris, but instead, Soren and his friends, along with the hero Lyze of Keil were sent to assist him and Nyra. Over the course of the two nights, they had met with their friend the Echidna, had to go through a bog, wrestle with a giant snake, duke it out with a bunch of perverted hawks and a mentally challenged eagle, and now, they were about to put to possibly the toughest test, a giant fog banked covered valley known as the Labyrinth Peaks.

The reason the peaks were called as such was due to the climate and the altitude and such, the entire valley was covered year-round with thick fog, making it next to impossible to navigate. Owls had tried to cross through here for decades, but they were never heard from again, when the Pure Ones claim the territory, no one, not even Metalbeak, dare fly in there. But, rumors has it that there were two owls that manage to fly through it unscathed, and have even made a way to cross it, however, for reasons unknown, they made the directions into a riddle…a riddle that our heroes were about to see…

Our heroes were flying as soon as they awaken (this time without any rude awakenings) and given the awkwardness of last night, the flight was silent, well it was before Digger asked "So…these peaks…what do you know about them, Nyra?"

Nyra gave a frown, "No more than you do, I'm afraid, all I heard was horror stories of how owls gotten lost in the fog and were never heard from again, that pretty much scared everyone off."

The Burrowing Owl gulped, and Soren asked, "Then how are we going to get through if no one hadn't made it to the other side?"

"Now, lad, we mustn't let such things get in our way." Ezylryb stated, "Surely the echidna wouldn't had sent us this way if there was no way across."

"Yeah, like this way was any easier than it would have been going against a 'plethora of Pure Ones'." Gylfie dryly quipped.

"Come on, we have come too far to doubt his directions now!" Twilight rebutted.

"Yes," Kludd agreed, "If he had known about what had happen back at St. Aegolius without anyone telling him, he must be right, and like Twilight said, we have come too far to turn back"

Gylfie would have said something, but she knew that they were both right.

"Hey, I think I see something!" Soren exclaimed as they saw what seems to be a cliff with something sticking out of it. Knowing that this might be important, the owls landed on the cliff and were approaching the 'something'.

That 'something' turn out to be a stick sticking out of the ground, with a red cloth dangling in the wind, confusing everyone, but that confusion was replaced by dread as they looked past it and saw a giant fog bank with top of the peaks sticking out of it.

"The Labyrinth Peaks…" Soren whispered.

"The final hurdle that stands between us and Skarmoris…" Kludd confirmed.

"…Why couldn't there been a happy meadow instead?" Digger complained.

The band stared at the giant cloud and Twilight looked at the stick, "I wonder why this thing is here."

"I do have a theory," The Screech Owl explained, "It is possible that this is a marker to guide anyone through here. If that is so, that must mean that there's more of these in there." However, before he could say anymore, Nyra tripped over something.

"DAMN IT! What the hagsmire?!" The white Barn Owl screeched as she look at what she tripped on, which turned out to be a smooth rock.

"That's odd," Gylfie looked at the rock, "Why would a smooth rock, ones that you would find near an ocean, be way up here?"

"Maybe our little rock likes a 'rough crowd'" Digger joked (**cue joke drum roll**). No one laughed, either because it wasn't funny, or they were too busy focusing on the bizarre out-of-place stone.

"Uh…hey guys, take a look at this…" Soren enquired, as while looking at the stick, he saw something, like a plaque engraved in the cliff. On it, there was a message that went like this:

_"Ye who have made it thus far to the peaks of the fog labyrinth, your efforts are commended,_

_but your journey is not done, the story had not ended yet, you have yet a bit more to go,_

_Those who just charge into the everlasting mist as soldiers would into battle, be dubbed foolish,_

_As this road is not as straight as an arrow, but riddled with curves that match that of a serpent,_

_In order to reach the other side of this unforgiving void, thou must follow the blood-colored winds,_

_Coiled around that of wooden stakes that are thrusted into the faces of the many peaks…"_

"The road is not as straight as an arrow…" Gylfie repeated.

"Riddled with curves that match that of a serpent…" Nyra repeated as well,

"Follow the red winds? What does that mean?" Digger asked, a little confused.

"Hmmm, the message could be referring to the flag attached to the stick." Ezylryb stated matter-of-factly

"I guess your theory was correct." Soren said, "But…" he looked back at the plaque, "I wonder who placed it here…"

"Look, we have no time to question things like that!" Kludd said impatiently, "The stupid piece of metal said that we need to follow the damn flags, that's all we need to hear! The sooner we get through here, the sooner we can stop Skarmoris and bring things back to normal. Into the fog, WE FLY!" He bellowed as he took to the air and disappears into the fog.

"KLUDD, WAIT!" Soren and Nyra both screeched at the same time, but then they look at each other awkwardly, but decided not to question that.

"We need to go after him!" The male Barn Owl screeched, "There's no telling what may be in there!"

"Don't think that going to be a problem, lad." Twilight said with confidence, "Look…"

Indeed, Kludd, who went in headfirst, somehow managed to get turned around and was flying towards them. The scarred Barn Owl landed and was shocked to see his comrades and asked "Wait a minute, how did you guys get here before me?"

"Lad, this is the same flag you started at…" Ezylryb merely replied.

"DAMMIT! Let's try this again…" The new Metalbeak muttered, as he took off again into the fog, then a few seconds later, he was back out again, fortunately, he was smart to notice that the others were still there, and got even more frustrated, "DAMMIT!" This went on for a few more minutes, when the Pure One returned to the cliff and drop down in exhaustion. "I don't understand, the damn plaque said to follow the flags, yet the moment I set a talon in there, I can't see tooth nor nail of any flag!" he panted.

"Maybe we are missing something." Nyra suggested.

"But what though? It's not like part of the plaque was concealed under dirt or something." Twilight said, before he and everyone else realized what he said.

Kludd took heed of this, and looked back to the inscription and said to himself, "I wonder…" as he went to part where it seemingly end, and look at the dirt below it, and smirked. "Digger, your expertise is required."

The moment the Burrowing Owl heard those words, he happily lunged at the dirt patch and started scraping the dirt off, and soon enough, he was hitting metal, and when did, he cheered "Done!…oh boy…" In his excitement to dig, he fail to account for where the dirt would land, and unfortunately, the dirt happen to land on three Barn Owls, the Whiskered Screech Owl, the Great Gray Owl, and, to his horror, the cute Elf Owl he liked, as they gave a glare at him. "Sorry…" Digger muttered.

Gylfie quickly soften her glare, and said, "It is alright, although you should look before you dig."

"She got that right...well, is there anymore to that plaque?" Kludd asked.

Soren quickly moved over to the riddle, and read it from beginning once more:

_"Ye who have made it thus far to the peaks of the fog labyrinth, your efforts are commended,_

_But your journey is not done, the story had not ended yet, you have yet a bit more to go,_

_Those who just charge into the everlasting mist as soldiers would into battle, be dubbed foolish,_

_As this road is not as straight as an arrow, but riddled with curves that match that of a serpent,_

_In order to reach the other side of this unforgiving void, thou must follow the blood-colored winds,_

_Coiled around that of wooden stakes that are thrusted into the faces of the many peaks,_

_However, this information alone is not enough to cross this unholy bridge, and impatience will be your downfall,_

_As in order to truly see the path to your destiny before your eyes,_

_You must gather the stones and follow them straight using the hands of time,_

_Only then will you fly the path and fulfill your ultimate purpose..."_

Unfortunately, this riddle instantly confused everyone, and Kludd screeched "WHAT? Stones? Follow? The hands of time? That makes no sense what so ever!"

"Calm down, Kludd, surely there's an answer, like a wise starling once said, 'Every puzzle has a solution'." Twilight smirked with confidence (**Quoted from Professor Layton, but to understand the starling, look up 'Oh, Gosh, A Platinum Nuzlocke', it is a Pokemon comic that features a Staraptor with Layton's hat**)

"True words, Twilight, now let's put our heads together and think..." Ezylryb ordered, as everyone start pondering the riddle. For the next twenty minutes, everyone were thinking with all their might to figure it out, Gylfie was busy making notes on the ground, The Lyze of Keil was pacing, Digger was about to said something, but then he went 'naw', Nyra was deep in thought, Soren and Kludd were both pacing pass each other, with their wings at their beaks, and as for Twilight...he was thinking while strumming his lute (**think of the music playing when contestants are thinking of an answer to the question on a reality tv show**).

"You know, it is hard to think with all that noise." The new Metalbeak said, a little ticked off.

"Well, sorry, music helps me think." Twilight sarcastically spat back.

Gylfie rolled her eyes at the two owls fighting, as she was half-tempted to chuck a rock at them, as she reached for the same smooth rock that Nyra tripped over, then she stop and realized, "_Out of place rock...near the flag...hands of time...by glaux, that is it!_" "GUYS! I THINK I GOT IT!" She yelled, snapping everyone out of his or her focus.

"Really? That is great, Gylfie!" Soren complimented.

"Yeah...so what's the answer?" Kludd asked.

"Elementary, my Pure One friend," Gylfie smirked, "You remember this rock, right?" she held up the smooth rock, "I think _this_ is one of the many stones the puzzle was referring to."

"Uh...so?" Twilight said, not getting it at all.

The Elf Owl sighed, "The riddle said 'gather the stones and follow them using the hands of time', it was referring to the marks on a sundial..." as she then drew a makeshift sundial with twelve dashes all around it. "Do any of you guys see any more of those rocks?" She asked.

The band then quickly looked around, but couldn't find any more, "No, 'fraid not." Digger replied, "but I am not following what you are saying."

"It is simple, actually, the numbers of rock is reference to an hour on a sundial, which in turn is referring to the direction we should head!" Gylfie explained, obviously excited by the answer.

"I think I get it," Digger smiled, "If there's three rocks, we go right, six rocks, back, nine rocks, left, twelve rocks, forward, is that right?"

Everyone stared amazed at the Burrowing Owl and Gylfie said to herself, "_My glaux, I am so in love with him so much, why can't I tell him?_" then she ahems and said "That is correct, Digger, if I am correct, if we head in the one o'clock direction, we should see the next flag, and possibly more smooth rocks such as this."

"Exemplary work, Gylfie, you too, Digger, now let's hope that we can make it through this damn obstacle." Ezylryb said with concern, "Owls, into the fog we GO!" He ordered, as everyone started to take off, however when Digger took off, his talons push some more dirt off the plaque and it said:

_"Oh, and there are sudden thunderstorms...thought that should be mentioned."_

_K and S, two brothers, aspiring heroes..._

And so they went into the forbidden fog, as their sight is instantly limited to in front of them and Twilight said, "Gosh, what with these places and thick mist and fog, eh, Digger?"

"Uh...I'm Nyra." The white Barn Owl awkwardly answered.

"Oh not this again." Ezylryb groaned.

They continue onwards till, just as Gylfie suspected, they saw yet another flag dangling in the wind, similar to that of the first one.

"Wow, you were right!" Soren answered with glee.

"Of course she is," Digger gloated, "She is the smartest owl I know!" This prompted Gylfie to blush a little.

"Hmm...there are ten rocks here," Nyra examined, pointing out the ten smooth stones surrounding the flag's post, "So we head slightly to the northwest, sound simple enough." as the band continued through the fog bank. At each flag post, they saw the rocks immediately, as they head in a seven, a four, a five, a two, and another ten o'clock direction, and it continued like this for nearly thirty flag posts (**don't ask me how they posted all this flags in one valley**), and there were times they felt there were flying in circles, but they kept to it, knowing that they are in way too deep to turn back...however things started to get unsettling when the fog started to dissipate...

"Huh...hey the fog is giving out!" Gylfie pointed out.

"That is odd, how could any owl _not_ come back if this entire fog bank disappear, it doesn't make sense." Soren said, with a tinge of concern within his voice.

"Well, brother," Kludd said, rolling his eyes and smirking, "If being Metalbeak taught me anything, it is to never look a gift owl in the beak, so in other words, forget about it." Soren was about to rebut, but for once, he agreed with his Pure One brother, he was just overthinking things. However, it started to rain, Kludd looking up at the sky, merely said "What do you know? It suddenly started raining."

It was getting worse than that, as the wind started to pick up and the rain turn into a torrential downpour, much like the storm that night over the Sea of Hoolemere. Everyone was beginning to struggle, but Kludd, being the headstrong and stubborn owl he was, he refused to stop.

"KLUDD! WE NEED TO STOP!" Soren screeched over the wind, as the Barn Owl was soaked.

"HE'S RIGHT, MY KING! THESE SKIES ARE NOT FIT FOR PURE ONE OR GUARDIAN!" Nyra yelled, as she agreed with Soren, something she never thought would happen.

"YEAH! I DON'T THINK I CAN FLY NO MORE!" Gylfie cried, because due to her small stature, her body couldn't handle the strong wind as she was instantly blown away.

"GYLFIE!" Digger quickly jumps to catch her, but at the speed she was going, he was also blown away, as they both crash into Twilight.

The Great Gray Owl groaned, as he caught the two smaller owls, and said "COME ON, LAD! YOU CAN'T EXPECT ANY OF US TO GET ANY FARTHER!"

Ezylryb, the most concerned about his team's safety, yelled out to Kludd, "EVERYONE IS RIGHT! WE NEED TO FIND SHELTER!" as he flew with all his might to catch up with the scarred Barn Owl, "ARE YOU..."

"IF YOU ARE SO DAMN CONCERNED ABOUT A LITTLE RAIN, THEN FIND SHELTER!" The new Metalbeak screamed at him, "I ALREADY LOST MY KINGDOM AND MY SUBJECTS, AND GLAUX DAMN IT, I AM NOT GOING TO LOSE MY LAST SHRED OF DIGNITY!" As he flew off, but unfortunately, a sudden lightning flashed in front of him, blinding and scaring him.

"KLUDD/METALBEAK!" Everyone else screeched as the Barn Owl fumbled in the sky.

Ezylryb was scared for him, when he realize something that should save him, and then he ordered, "Follow your gizzard, lad! Fly inside!"

Soren quickly jumped when he heard those words, "_Is he...is he seriously going to teach Kludd how to fly using his gizzard? Right now?!_" he thought.

Kludd was frozen, he always had an anxious tick around lightnings, and now, nearly singed by one, he was practically scared, more scared than he ever been in his life. He couldn't open his eyes, as he heard the old owl scream again, "Come on, focus! Kludd, FOCUS!" however, as he heard that, he also heard another familiar voice along with it, it sounded a lot like...Metalbeak? How could that be?

"Come on, boy! YOU ARE THE KING OF THE PURE ONES!" The Metalbeak-like voice bellowed, as Kludd, as if suddenly possessed by a ghost, opened his eyes and spread his wings, as he started to glide in gizzard flying fashion, as the wind and rain blew around him. For once in his life, he started to feel something, peace? Content? He had no idea, but he enjoyed it.

The others were in awe as they saw the once frozen owl fly in controlled fashion, like Soren had done a year earlier, and all the owl in question could say was "I don't believe it..."

Nyra was impressed as well, as she never saw any owl flew in such a way, however, it was immediately replaced by horror, as she saw Kludd was about to fly into a side of a mountain, "KLUDD! WATCH OUT!"

Kludd, however, didn't pay heed, as his mind was so focused on the peace, that he started to lose consciousness. Fortunately, as if Glaux was looking over him, he crash-landed into a small cave. Soren and the others gasped in horror as they quickly fly into the cave to find Kludd unconscious...

Kludd, now unresponsive, started to think of a memory...however, this one wasn't as joyous as any of the memories before.

(**NOTE: Before continuing, don't ask why Kludd fell unconscious, he was weakened by the rain and the lightning scare, and the gizzard flying thing kinda brought him to a comatose state**)

**Flashback starts**

_Two years earlier..._

(**NOTE: their original actors now voice Kludd and Soren**)

The seventeen-year old Barn Owl Kludd was busy angrily storming through the woods as he was walking home. Why was he angry, you may ask, well you should ask fifteen-year old Soren, as he quickly run-er-wobble as he tried to catch up with his older brother, "KLUDD!"

"What?! Haven't you humiliate me enough for the past few months?!" The older barn owl snarled back at him.

"I don't understand! Why are you angry?" Soren pleaded, as he didn't like seeing his older brother angry.

Kludd was giving him a fierce glare as he remember a few months back, when he started to hang out with a few of his new owl friends, and Soren, who had taken quite a liking to being like his big brother, wished to hang out with him. Kludd, being the big brother, decided to humor the younger Barn Owl and let him. When they decided to race, he was surprised when Soren beat him. Thinking it was dumb luck, Kludd and his friends tried a makeshift game of soccer (using a rock), but Soren beat him yet again. This started to become a pattern throughout the months, as the younger brother bested him in everything imaginable, even his friends were starting to see him as a better owl than Kludd.

The older Barn Owl tried to not think much into it, but today...today was the straw that broke the camel's back; as he started learning how to branch from his father, and was more than excited to show off to his friends, as he would finally have something that Soren wouldn't have (well, at least not for another year or so, but he would be a better brancher by then). However, Soren followed him without his knowing, and watched Kludd try to show off his branching skills to his friends by jumping from the top of a stump to another branch of a nearby stump, but failed miserably as he tripped and fell in between. He groaned as he failed to impress them, but he noticed that the owls weren't looking at him. He looked up, and with shock and anger, he saw Soren, as he got on the branch and with a simple jump, he made it to the other stump. This prompted a few cheers from his friends as they approached the young owlet and questioned him on how he did so well...

"Well, I guess normally I'd picture myself as a Guardian, but most of the credits should go to my big brother..." He looked around, and noticed Kludd was gone. "Kludd?" as he went off to find him.

Thus bringing them to this moment, as the older Barn Owl snarled, "I let you had all those wins over the months, but you...you had to go and take the last possible thing that I could do better!"

"Kludd, I didn't mean..." Soren tried to explain.

"SAVE IT!" Kludd said, as he then smack him with his right talon, "I am supposed to be the older brother, therefore the better owl! I am sick of you following me around, showing me up!"

Soren, starting to tear up a little from the hit from his older brother, whimpered "But Kludd...what happen to brothers always looking after each other, what about the Two Brothers?"

The older Barn Owl stop a bit, when he heard his quiet sobbing and muttered, "You obviously don't need me anymore, and besides, the older brother died in the end..." as the owl almost teared up from remembering how the ill-fated story ended four years ago, that when he had his father stopped telling them the story. "All you need now are the damn Guardians..." as he grunted a little, as his father started telling that to Soren and Eglantine, as he walked away from Soren, who started to cry even more; he would probably get in trouble with his father, but he could care less, as even he started to favor him over his eldest son, and that was the moment he stop giving a damn about his brother.

Soren, deeply hurt, merely squeaked out, "But...I am your brother..." as he continued sobbing.

Kludd paused, as he gave a sigh as he walked away, with a single tear rolling down his right cheek. This was when it all went downhill...

**Flashback ends**

"Kludd? Kludd? Can you hear me?" Soren said, while shaking him, as Kludd opened his eyes and saw that they were in a cave, with a patch of fire (probably from Ezylryb's flint from earlier) as everyone were staring at him with relief.

"Eh...what happened?" The scarred barn owl asked, as his head was throbbing a little.

"Well, my boy, you won't believe it, but you flew using your gizzard!" Ezylryb smirked.

"Huh...what do you mean, my gizzard? Last thing I remember was almost becoming a fried owl by that lightning" The new Metalbeak groaned

"It is quite complicated, but had you ever heard of gizzard flying, the art of controlled flight?" Soren asked.

Kludd was about to said no, but he remembered that feeling of flying within the winds, and said, "I think I remember now…that was what it was called?"

"Indeed, a techniques passed down from weather interpretation and coilering owls for generations, Soren used it to destroy the flecks back at St. Aeggies."

"Really?" Nyra said, a little interested, as then she remembered how she saw Soren flying into the burning forest and came out with a lamp of fire in his talons.

"Yes, " Soren nodded, "With it, I was able to fly through the fire and light it, it was quite amazing."

Kludd and Nyra gave an impressed look, as Kludd thought "_That explains quite a bit._" But then he was confused, "Wait, why did you teach it to me then? I am your enemy, and once this is over, we will be on opposite sides again." He said.

"Simple, lad. You would have simply fell to your death had I not, and besides, I thought if I could teach Soren how to do it, why not his brother?" The old Lyze of Keil explained. "I am not one for helping the enemy, but right now, you are a trusted comrade."

"Trusted? Don't you remember what I did? We nearly killed you back at St. Aegolius, I almost killed Soren and that one owl Otulissa! I am one of the Guardian's greatest threats?" Kludd asked, stupified.

All Ezylryb said was "So?" Kludd had no rebuttal to that, as he went to a sitting position,

"How far it is now to...Le...Pilier...de...la...Supré...ma...tie?" Digger asked, trying to say the name right.

"Only two to three hours more, since we are practically near the exit." Nyra confirmed, as she felt a little nervous stirring in her gizzard.

"It's hard to believe that we had come a long way from Ga'Hoole," Twilight said in disbelief, "This ought to be the furthest we ever flew behind enemy lines."

"Even more, we made it through the deadliest parts, with everything intact," Gylfie smirked as she remembered their journey.

Everyone chuckled as silence began to loom over, when Nyra asked, "What do we do once we finish this mission?"

This was a very good question indeed, they were so enthralled by their adventure that they fail to think ahead. No one knew how to answer that question, well not yet at least.

Then Twilight said, "Well, I don't like to admit it, but once I return home, I am going to profess my love to this one girl I had my eyes on."

"Really, who?" Gylfie asked, interested in the Great Gray Owl's love interest, she and everyone else (Nyra and Kludd now included) never thought he had anyone to fall in love with.

"Well...(**And the winner of the polls are...**), you know her as Strix Struma." Twilight confessed, prompting a lot of shocked expressions.

"What?! You are in love with leading navigator and warrior Strix Struma, that Strix Struma?" Soren asked, astonished.

Twilight nodded, "Yes...why is that such a surprise for you?"

"Well, Strix Struma was never one for love, Madame Plonk, yes, Strix, no," Ezylryb explained.

"Well, Plonk already has a mate, and Strix...well she is free-spirited, smart, and not to mention a superb fighter, that makes you want to say 'What a woman!' (**Hunchback of Notre Dame reference!**)" Twilight marveled, as he thought of the beautiful short-eared owl.

"What about you, Gylfie, what are your plans?" Nyra smirked at the Elf Owl, and everyone followed suit, as they all knew about the Gylfie and Digger chemistry.

"Well..." Gylfie blushed, as Digger started to watch her expectedly, as if she was to said something that he been wanting to hear for a long time, but Gylfie couldn't say those words to Digger, despites nearly being raped by a hawk, losing him to a snake, and all the other times, "I guess I will go back to my usual things...you know that I usually do."

Everyone (except Ezylryb, who somewhat expected the answer) drooped at the answer, and Digger merely sighed, as everyone then stared at him, expecting a confession or something, as Twilight asked "Well, Digger my boy, what do you plan to do?"

"I don't know what I be doing..." Digger replied as an answer to the others' stares, "I guess I follow Gylfie's lead, doing the usual..." The band sighed once more, why couldn't these two admit it, do one of them has to seriously take a swan dive to do it?"

"How 'bout Ezylryb?" Digger asked, "Surely he has plans with a certain nurse..." as everyone smirked at the old owl.

"Oh, lay off, comrades, am I not justified to have someone in my life? I may be a war hero, but I would like to settle down and have kids before I grow too old!" The Lyze asked with a bit of annoyance.

"Of course you are, you been through a lot in your life, Alice would be lucky to have you!" Soren smirked

"How about you, brother?" Kludd asked, "What are your plans for the future?" "_Aside from telling everyone that I am their worst nightmare...wait, why am I giving a damn about that?_"

"Well..." Soren said, he was planning on keeping this a secret till he actually did it, but he thought that he can tell his closest friends and hero, as well as his brother...and Nyra, he supposed, could be trusted, "You all know how I been with Otulissa for barely over a year now, right?"

Everyone nodded, including Kludd, and Soren continued, "Well, if we come back from this alive, I plan on...proposing to her...to be my mate."

Kludd's eyes widened, as well as Nyra and Ezylryb, as everyone else gasped, Twilight was the first to response, "Way to go, lad! I knew this day would come!"

"Yeah, this is great!" Digger cheered.

Even Gylfie, who once quarreled with Otulissa, was smiling as she had a feeling that Soren was planning on this for a while.

"Congratulations," Nyra merely said, as for reasons unknown, she was glad for him.

Kludd himself smiled for his brother, but then he suddenly thought "_Damn it Kludd, why are you thinking these thoughts? You are Metalbeak, you disowned him, what the hagmire is wrong with you!_" but another thought enter, his other conscious that he thought he left back at St. Aegolius, "_No, what is __**wrong**_ _with you? He is your brother, he had always been your brother, He will always be your brother, Metalbeak or not._"

For once, he agreed with that meek conscious and merely said, "Congrats, brother," although it was so quiet that no one could hear it, except Nyra, who secretly smiled at her love interest's sincerity.

"Now I do hope we can make it back." Soren said, as his smile turn into a concerned look.

"I am sure we will, we are Guardians, we always had a tendency to come back," The old Screech Owl said with absolute.

Kludd would agree with him, but an unsettling thought crossed his mind before he could said his congrats, "But, what if we can't defeat him?"

"Excuse me?" Ezylryb asked, not believing what Kludd just said, and everyone else stared at him.

"I mean, we literally went through Hagmire over the past nights, but we never thought about what would happen if we fail to defeat him! If we fail, not only we die, the owl kingdoms could be in jeopardy!" The scarred owl fretted.

"Where is all this coming from, lad?" The old Lyze of Keil asked, confused.

"We are riding a lot on this victory, Skarmoris was strong enough to kill a quarter of an army, if an army couldn't stop him, what to say that seven owls will make any difference?" Kludd asked, with a worried glance

However, the Lyze slapped him with his wing and screeched "LISTEN, BOY! WE HAD OVERCOME THE DEADLIEST OBSTACLES WE HAD EVER FACED, AND NOW YOU ARE HAVING SECOND THOUGHTS?! WHERE THE METALBEAK THAT WAS BRAVE ENOUGH TO LOOK PAST HIS PRIDE AND COME TO GA'HOOLE FOR HELP?! THE ONE WHO WAS OWL ENOUGH TO TAKE THE MANTLE AS KING OF THE PURE ONES, HUH?!" He finished as he started panting, but he noticed everyone's scared expression, even Nyra, and then ahems as he continued, "Kludd...you are one of the most talented owl I had ever met, sure you used them to serve the Pure Ones, I can live with that. The way you performed gizzard flying was one of the most exemplary flights I had seen, especially for a first time, even Soren hadn't done that well on his first try."

Kludd snorted "Oh, please, you probably say that about every owl that perform it," "_There's probably no way that I could ever be up to Soren's standards._" He bitterly remarked in his mind.

"I am not lying!" Ezylryb snarled at him, "If you were to become a Guardian, you would be one of the greatest to ever serve Ga'Hoole..."

Kludd and Nyra froze when he said that, the barn owl didn't know how to respond, "_How could he think that I could ever be...a Guardian?_" he thought. But he then looked at Nyra, who had a horrified expression.

"_No...glaux, no..._" Nyra fearfully thought.

But Kludd then said, "I can't..." Everyone gave him a confused look, then he adopted a fierce look, "I can't, my destiny is to be Metalbeak, and the king of the Pure Ones, it is my destiny to one day defeat the Guardians and avenge my old master, as I said before, the strong will triumph, the broken are put out of their misery, and honor...honor is another word for weakness!"

Everyone jumped back a little, shocked, and Soren couldn't believe it, "_Why does he still think such things, even after all that we just been through?_"

The scarred Barn Owl then continued, "The Pure Ones need me as much as I need them, even if they don't see it, and..." Kludd tried to find the strength to said this, "I can't abandon Nyra...I made a promise to her to uphold the Pure Ones' legacy, and damn it, I have every intention of fulfilling that promise."

The white Barn Owl was touched by such words, and would have went and kiss him then, but given the expression on Soren's face, one that was of shock, anger, and hurt, she thought it would be a bad idea.

"Most importantly, I've already burned that bridge, and I doubt anything you say can change that..." He finished, with a hint of sadness.

Ezylryb, not deterred by the new Metalbeak's speech, in fact, he was smirking, as he then said, "I understand, a true king is always loyal to his subjects, through the good and bad. I look forward to when we meet again in battle." This prompted a silent 'WHAT' from Soren when Ezylryb continued, "But...if glaux will it, should you want to join us...the bridge is still standing." Kludd returned the smile, and gave a nod.

Soren was about to say something, when Twilight, feeling the need to change the subject, noticed the fire was starting to go out, "Oh dear, we can't have the fire go out." As he quickly went to the back of a cave, and pulled out a rock from a pile that seemed to be a wall, however...that rock was covering a small tunnel with air coming through it, and in seconds, a strong jet of air blew through and blown out the fire like a candle.

"TWILIGHT!" Everyone screeched and glared at the Great Gray Owl.

"Sorry..." The big owl apologized.

"Look, it doesn't matter, as long as we have this flint..." Ezylryb said, before the wind stream blew the rock out of his talon and into the storm outside, prompting the Lyze to look outside with his squinted eye twitching as he said, "AW...[BOOM!]" The curse word was muffled out by a strong lightning.

"What do we do now?" Gylfie asked, as Twilight placed the rock back over the hole, "We have no flints, and there are no other rocks that we can use."

"Well, drastic times called for drastic measures," Ezylryb stated, "Everyone, huddle up!"

"WHAT?" Kludd asked, astonished.

"Ye heard me, lad, if we don't want to freeze our tailfeathers off, we need to share body heat!" The Whiskered Screech Owl explained, "Now, it will go like this: Nyra, Kludd, Soren, Me, Twilight, Gylfie, and Digger, left to right! We must get close together, we can't afford to succumb to the cold!"

Everyone looked at each other with awkwardness, but not wanting to freeze, they complied, and soon, they were assembled in a bunched together line, and Ezylryb said, "Okay, now, we must try to get some sleep, because I have a feeling that tomorrow is going to be a long one..."

Indeed, tonight, they will finally confront Skarmoris, and put a stop to whatever it is he is planning, and everyone nodded.

Gylfie, however, felt herself heating up when she felt Digger's feathers rub up her wing, and Digger, seeing that he just did, tried to explain, "Sorry...I just thought it would feel warmer over here..."

"No, it's fine...I guess I'm still not used to having to be in close proximity with a male." Gylfie said, remembering two nights ago when Digger said I love you in a childish tone.

Digger nodded as he asked, "Are you sure nothing happened that one night? Because, I usually don't sleep next to females," "_Especially the beautiful ones._" He thought to himself.

The Elf Owl wanted to tell him so bad that he said those three words, but she wouldn't be able to take it if Digger just laughed at it and called it stupid. "No, you weren't in the right mind and was shaken by the story that you wanted someone to hold." She answered, with a small smile.

The Burrowing Owl sighed to himself, he knew deep in his heart that he said something that night to make Gylfie nervous and sad whenever he brought it up, if he could only remember...Then Gylfie cuddled up to him, as she explained, "Maybe I should return the favor...do you mind?"

Digger wanted to scream yes, but seeing how the others were trying to sleep, he merely nodded, as the two fell into slumber, both content with the owl they were next to.

Unbeknownst to them, Nyra, who was busy trying to sleep, noticed the two and smirked, as it started to remind her of...she shook the thought, "_Damn it, why do these memories keep tormenting me?_" then a voice in her head said "_You can't keep these memories under wraps forever...you're trying to swallow your pain when you need release, when will you let it release?_" "_The Hagmire I can! All my past brings me now is pain, unrelenting pain! SO SHUT UP!_" She thought back at the voice. She took a glimpse at Kludd as he tried to sleep and sighed with content as he was all she need now, an owl with unwavering loyalty, a strong spirit, and...she didn't know, but she felt something different about Kludd than she did about her Metalbeak. Not willing to think anymore into it, she merely laid her head on Kludd's shoulder and drifted off to sleep.

The barn owl in question was still awake (and he smiled when he felt the female owl's head against his feathers), as he mulled over what Ezylryb had said eariler, "_The bridge is still standing...How can he forgive me? I am practically a newer model of his rival...is it because of Soren?_" He looked to his left, as he saw Soren and Ezylryb, now sleeping peacefully. Kludd then realized that he never be ready to beat Skarmoris if he's kept up all night thinking about it...all he need now is rest, as he grab one more glance at the beautiful white owl and drifted off...but there are some secrets that are still under wraps...

* * *

"You call for me, Lord Skarmoris?" General Nix asked, as he was in the throne room, as Skarmoris was watching the seas once more.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl nodded, "Yes, how are they feasting?" as he had the owls now feeding on corpses.

"Well, more or less, sir, some owls can barely get a bite in without upchucking it back up, while some others are eating them like crazy." The grass owl replied.

"And as for you and the lieutenants?" Skarmoris addressed.

"Jatt and Jutt said that they are feeding, yet I didn't see blood on them nor any of the effects of this feasting method. As for me, I am just fine..." Nix smirked, as he licked a bit of blood from his beak.

"It's simple to understand, not all owls took to the cannibalism like fishes to water, I, myself had a little trouble at first, but trust me, it gets better later on. I am impressed that you are taking it quite well." The usurper king (**Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess Lord Zant reference!**) laughed.

"Of course, my liege, anything to gain ultimate power and for you." Nix bowed,

"Glad to hear it, because I am sending you and those two brutes to 'bring' our 'guests of honor' here." He ordered.

"Who may they be?" The once-lieutenant owl asked.

Meanwhile, outside in the 'elites' chamber, Jatt and Jutt were looking at a dead corpse, as part of their 'ration' and were grimacing.

"Well, one of us gotta eat it, or we will fall behind the other owls." Jutt said, with fear.

"I know that!" Jatt screeched, "but why do we need to have to eat something so vile?"

"According to what others said, if you just imagine it as something tasty, it will help you along." His Long-Eared Owl cousin explained.

"Well...here goes nothing..." Jatt grimaced, as he picked up part of the corpse, closed his eyes, and was about to eat it and possibly lose his mind (**part of the cannibal effect**), when he heard the shouts...

"JATT! JUTT!" Nix screeched as he left the throne room, "We were assigned a retrieval mission!"

Surprised by the shouts, Jatt and Jutt quickly threw the dead corpse aside to another owl (who simply ate it up, since he was now a mindless predator), and Jutt asked "Uh...to where, General?"

The Pure Ones' general smirked as he said it with the darkest chuckle, "_The Great Tree of Ga'Hoole..._"

* * *

**A/N: Wooo, we are dealing with some suspense...what secrets has yet to be revealed? Who are 'the guests of honor'? And what is possibly in Ga'Hoole (that last one is a rhetorical question)? Well, I must admit, this chapter wasn't exactly my best, as some of the dialogue didn't sound as good when said aloud and such, but we do get some more Digger and Gylfie as well as Kludd and Nyra, hints at Ezylryb and Alice, and plans of engagement between our favorite owl Soren and Otulissa (those who are book fans and fans of Soren and Pellimore, don't you dare (BLEEP!) to me about it). As you had seen in the story, the winner of the polls are none other than Strix Struma (I am to assume she is about Twilight's age in the movie, and I don't care if she is an old coot in the books), and the summary will change to reflect that (she is the SS). The puzzle and the layout was greatly inspired by the Lost Cave in Pokemon FireRed and Leafgreen and the Gerudo Desert in LoZ: Ocarina of Time. As for who K and S are, here's a hint, it is not Kludd and Soren (bet that was your first guess, huh?), that will be revealed all in due time. As for chapter fourteen, it will take time, but I'll tell you this, I am going into Nyra and Metalbeak's past, something I bet was never done before on this site, about how they met, and how Metalbeak became...well, Metalbeak. However, this does bring one question to mind, does Metalbeak already have a name (such as Surtr) or am I free to give him a name (because...if no one answers this following question...I will shoot the bunny! (Mrs. Crabtree reference from South Park)) I am just kidding about the bunny part, but I am serious, does original Metalbeak have a name already, or not? READ and REVIEW!**

_**Artworks stuff are appreciated**_


	14. A Promise Made

**A/N: Hey there, everyone, Shen's General here, I apologize for the lack of updates over the past two weeks, as this chapter was brutal…brutal because this chapter was first intended to include Nyra's past as well as a bit of progression in the main storyline, but as I went into the past, I went into extraordinary detail, and soon, I was over seventeen thousand words and still not done with the chapter. So not only did I only made this into a flashback chapter, but I made it a two-parter…anywho, I am going where no LotG writer had gone before…the past of Nyra and Metalbeak…in this chapter, as well as the next, we will see how everything in these two Pure Ones' lives came to be…I apologize beforehand for any OOCness, incontinency with the movie, and plain bad writing that could be in this chapter. WARNING: THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER IN THE STORY THUS FAR!**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**I do not own Naked nor Walker Hayes, as well as Look After You and The Fray (but the songs are great)**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but Mic O'Malley used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, and two OCs, one that will play a major, MAJOR role in this story, who are introduced in this chapter.**

**Special thanks out to Crazybird101 for helping me with the name of Metalbeak, to Mic O'Malley for helping determine Nyra and Metalbeak's age as well as teaching me about Glamoria, and to LydeaBlaze for ideas within this chapter.**

* * *

Chapter Fourteen: A Promise Made

"_I got some stories that I'm not so proud of, maybe you got a couple of your own, I'll tell you mine, if you'll tell me yours..."_

-a verse from Naked by Walker Hayes

The storm within the Labyrinth Peaks raged on with unmatched fury, as the band slept, trying to stay as warm as possible, by huddling together, making efficient use of body heat. The owls were sleeping with ease, with the exception of a certain white Barn Owl. One would wonder why the beautiful she-owl would be fretting, as she had a lover, a kingdom (if they beat Skarmoris), and was queen (again, if they defeat him), but there's are a few things you should know about her, more importantly, her past...

For the last couple of days, when she was questioned about sad goodbyes, jokes, and when the original Metalbeak was brought up, memories of such things began to resurface, memories that were deemed too painful for Nyra to remember, that made her heart ached with sheer pain, especially ever since Metalbeak's death a year ago. So whenever it showed a sign of breaking, she just shoved it back into the back of her mind and into the pit of her stomach and gizzard...but it couldn't last, as this night, her will was at its weakest, and due to keeping it under wraps for a whole year, all the memories flowed back into her mind like a powerful tidal wave...and there was no pushing it away...

**Major flashback starts **(**I am going on a limb that Nyra's 25 (26 in story) and Metalbeak and Ezylryb are 47 (Lyze is now 48), is there an issue with that?**)

_**Eight years earlier…**_

Within the Pure Ones territory, it was not uncommon to find nothing but desolate wastelands, dead woodlands, and craggy peaks, basically...no signs of life. However, this is not true, around the area of St. Aegolius, there was a forest with trees that had leaves that glowed orange as of autumn year-round. To many owls within the territory, this was considered the only beautiful thing within miles. It was known as the _Forest of Beaks_. (**Shocker!**)

The moon was slowly rising over the forest, as many owls start their night going out to hunt and visit their friends, but tonight was a momentous night for a certain owl. She was Nyra, eighteen-years old, who recently learned how to fly real well, her feathers were that of pure snow and eyes of blue and green (**She doesn't have that red brow yet**). It was everyday knowledge to owls in Beaks that when a male owl (a female owl doesn't have to) is of age of eighteen and was able to fly that come a full moon, they were to make a pilgrimage through Talon's Breach to the Pillar of Supremacy, the base of the Pure Ones, where they would determine whether the owl was soldier material or not. Those who were would be given shelter and food and would be trained to their limit of their abilities, a rare few would make it to a rank of an elite, let alone lieutenant or general.

Nyra was busy saying goodbye to her mother, who was the only one remaining in her family, her father had once served the Pure Ones as a lieutenant, and was a damn good one, but as all many soldiers does in a war, he had perished in battle against a rival group who tried to take over the territory when Nyra was thirteen. The loss had deeply hurt both of them and Nyra, despite many Pure Ones' opinion on female soldiers, vowed to be one of the strongest soldiers to ever had served the Pure Ones, and to avenge his father's death.

Her mother, also a beautiful white barn owl in her forties, (**voiced by Sela Ward, who plays Jo Danville in CSI: NY**) hugged her, "I cannot believe this day is already here, my little snowflake is now being set to the wind..." as tears started to gather in her eyes.

"Please, mother, don't make this harder than it need to be," Nyra said, (**her young voice is that of Emma Watson, who plays Hermione in Harry Potter**) "I need to do this, not just because it is regulation, but for father..." She finished with tears now stinging.

"I know, your father would be so proud of you," Nyra's mother sighed, "Just remember...follow the wind, remember what to do to males that gets too feisty, and..." she hugged her daughter once more, "No matter what happens...you can always come home."

Nyra gave a sad smile as she hopped out on the branch and spread her wings, and with one last teary smile, she took off, as she flew off into the moonrise, this was an end of childhood and the beginning into adulthood...

Three hours later, Nyra was busy gliding through the narrow valley of Talon's Breach as she noticed the over looming rocks and such and said to herself, "The elders were right, this place has nothing but rocks, rocks, and more rocks." Her mind wandered to what life at the Pillar of Supremacy would be like, and whether she would have what it takes. "_I doubt the bar to get in isn't that high, but I can't help but think...what if I am not good enough?_"

Her train of thought was derailed when two owls flew overhead and one of them hit an over branching rock. Nyra got a glimpse of them, the two owls were both Barn Owls such as herself and were donning helms of the Pure Ones. She listened as one of the owl squabbled to the other one who bumped his head and called him a 'dull wingnut', as she then smirked, "_What am I worried about? If those owls managed to get into the ranks, why can't I?_"

Soon, as the valley widened, she saw the _Hagsfiend's Sea_ and gasped. She had never once seen the sea due to living in a mostly landlocked area and was in pure amazement, "_My glaux...this is the most beautiful thing I had ever seen before._" The sea (in comparison with today) was calm and very smooth waves enveloped over other waves, and in the middle, the powerful spire-like _Pillar of Supremacy_. Nyra's breath was caught when she saw it, but she gathered her courage as she approached her ultimate destination.

A few minutes later, she was at the main gate, and to her surprise, so were a group of owls, about her age, waiting patiently. She landed on the platform before the gate, and without hesitation, she asked one of the owls (a Tasmanian Masked Owl) in the back, "How long has everyone been here?"

The male owl, turning around, eyes widening as he noticed it was a beautiful female, and said in an attempted charming voice (**voiced by...just think some random male actor**) "The first few were here before sunset, the rest of us just came in three hours ago, I was here for four, but I guess those hours will fly by now you are here," he finished with a winking brow.

"Oh, where did you pick that line up? A cheap parcel on tasteless courting lines?" Nyra dryly spat, as she rolled her eyes at the now-astonished male. It wasn't new that a male bird would flirt with her, it been like that ever since she hit her growth spurt in her teenager years, she was considered very beautiful (she credited that to her mother) and when she did, her mother sat down with her and talked to her about 'the birds and the bees' and taught her how to tell between a cheap scumbag who mounts and leave, and an actual caring owl who would make a wonderful mate; this owl here was of the former.

Before the owl could offer a rebuttal, everyone heard clicking, as the gates started to open. Everyone (Nyra included), seeing this, started to fill into the giant chamber (**the training grounds from ch 7 and 8**) and were in a giant group. Nyra looked around and saw the banners of the Pure Ones hanging upon all sides of the chamber, and noticed (to her horror) that she was the only female in the group. "_Good glaux, would it hurt these owls to allow a bit of variety in their army?_" She quipped to herself. Then, she heard a vicious caw as a swarm of owls flew into the chamber through the hole (**like in chapter 7, for aerial combat**) and landed in front of the group, all of them donning Pure Ones' helmets and with red eyes that seem to stare into your soul...well, it felt like it did to Nyra.

Then, a small Pure One made his way to the front of the crowd and bellowed, "Recruits! Soldiers! Bow to the great High Tyto, Lord Zephyr!" as coming through the hole was a giant white Barn Owl (same color as her father) flew in and as he landed, the Pure Ones parted away as they bowed to their leader. The recruits, Nyra included, seeing their example, did as well. Nyra, while bowing, snuck a quick look at the owl; he was taller than most owls she had seen (**think about Nyra's present height as well as Skarmoris and Fatal**), he had a pure golden helm with a ruby embedded in the center, his eyes were that of pure gold, and across his right shoulder, he had a green cloak, and his expression...it was a look that demanded respect.

The Barn Owl seeing that everyone was giving him respect, raised his cloaked wing, signaling everyone to ease, and said (**His voice is that of Donald Sutherland, he played President Snow in the Hunger Games...it kinda works don't ya think?**) "Greetings, fellow Tytos, as you all know, I am Lord Zephyr, ruler of the Pure Ones and of the eastern crags. As all you know, the time had come for you owls to finally take your place in history as soldiers for the Pure Ones' cause, 'to triumph over the weak and to put the broken out of their misery'." Nyra shivered a little, as his voice had a strict and icy tone to it, "However, not all owls are born with wings of the mighty and claws of the fierce, which brings us to ask, 'which of you owls are worthy of upholding our cause?' I will ask you now, fall into a straight line."

Everyone stared at each others, confused, and the king, a little annoyed, shouted "I SAID FALL INTO LINE!" This frightened all the owls as they stumbled and moved quickly to get into a straight line, while Nyra, shocked his voice, was in the middle. "Good," Zephyr nodded, regaining his composure, and with a flick, a crop (**those things commanding officers used**) was out, as he approached the recruits and moved alongside them examining them.

He looked at one, who had a nervous tick, and asked "Name?"

"C-Corith, your m-majesty." The nervous owl stammered. (**I would voice this one by Rupert Grint, but he is just a random owl**)

The king gave him a few inspections and poked a little with his crop, and said "A little antsy, but nothing training can't fix. Accepted." He stated with absolute, and the owl gave a deep exhale as he stepped forth and stand near the Pure Ones, as they gave him their congrats. Then he moved onto the next one, who seemed to have a limp, and asked in the same tone "Name?"

"Heathmore." The owl replied.

He repeated his examination on him, and when he noticed the limp, he asked, "How did you get the limp?"

The boy merely said, "I was born with it, I believed."

The king's expression dimmed, and he said, "I am sorry, but we have no place for weakness in this army. Denied." as he had two of his soldiers escorted the disappointed owl out. Nyra watched the poor owl as she was starting to doubt herself.

"_Oh dear, the king is very strict when it comes to weakness, I hope I can do well..._" She thought to herself, as unbeknownst to her, she had caught the attention of one of the Pure Ones...

The next hour or so went like this, Lord Zephyr looking at each owl as he give his own little comment and say either 'Accepted' or 'Denied', and as more and more owls were booted out, whether it was because he had a deformity, a weak body stature, or 'didn't rub him the right way', Nyra was becoming more and more nervous, and was half tempted to leave, but she remembered her father and stood still. Soon, he was examining the same Tasmanian Masked Owl that tried flirting with her (who happened to be right next to her) and said with a glare, "Are you joking? This cur is probably doing this to attract a female, this is for a higher cause, not for your perverted fantasies. Denied."

The said owl drooped as he was found out and was escorted away. Nyra cheered inwardly as she wouldn't have to see that poor excuse of an owl ever again, but that stopped when Zephyr was in front of her now, and believe or not, she felt that the king had gotten taller and more intimidating.

The king was about to said 'Name?' when he noticed that the owl he was asking was different..."Well, well, well, it had been ages since these halls had seen a female." Soon, everyone stared at her, making Nyra's anxiety heighten to a new level, and the male Barn Owl gave a chuckle, "You know, child, we are feared because of our numbers and our strength, but..." then he moved his eyes close to her, nearly causing the female to stumble back, "We don't take lightly to any owls, especially females. Every female who had enter the Pure Ones were either killed, raped, or never heard from again, what makes you think that you are any different?"

The she-owl was slightly offended that he had little opinion of females, slightly shocked by what happened to them, but she knew that she had to answer, "I am Nyra, daughter of Lieutenant Lucius."

Zephyr's expression flickered a bit, "Lucius? Oh, you must be Lucius's daughter, he was a grand fighter and took great pride in our cause, we lost a great owl that day...but I am not one to take chances, so I have no choice..." Nyra tried to find a word to protest, "but to say..." He continued

"Give her a chance!" A voice echoed out, interrupting the king, as a few Pure Ones stepped aside to reveal a middle-aged Sooty Owl, who unlike the other Pure Ones, wasn't helmed.

The king, a bit peeved that someone spoke out of line, but easily recognized the owl, "What makes you so sure?"

The Sooty Owl then said, "I don't know, but I knew Lucius from back then, and turning his daughter away would be nothing but a sheer insult, do you want that?"

The older Barn Owl shook his head as he then rebutted "What proof do we have that this owl has the blood of her father running in her veins?"

"Then I prove myself, I will fight to avenge him, anything!" Nyra answered with determination in her eyes.

Zephyr looked at her, and then the Sooty Owl, and merely chuckled, "Very well...You share his spirit, that ought to be commended, Accepted...conditional."

Nyra gave a small smile, as she stepped forth (although she didn't know what he meant by conditional), however, the other owls stared at her. Not willing to be gawked at like a prize, she asked, "What? Didn't your mother teach you not to stare?"

A Pure One stepped forth and looked at her, and sneered, "Oh, dearie, you are not going to survive being a Pure One, I tell you that much."

"WHAT?! What makes you so sure?!" Nyra glared at the helmed owl.

"Clean your ear holes, King Zephyr said _conditional_, what he means to say is if you don't win your initiation match, you're out!" The helmed owl stated with malice.

"Initiation match?" Nyra repeated, a little confused.

"When we get new soldiers, we break them in by beating the crud out of them," The Pure One said with a evil smirk, "If Glaux smiles upon you, you will be pitted against a rookie or a dunce, which are pushovers, but if not, you will probably face an elite. The one you better pray to Glaux that you don't get paired up with Surtr."

"Surtr?" The white Barn Owl repeated, a little frightened.

The Pure One answered, "He is an elite, not to mention the general of this army, been here for over twenty years, a jack of all trades, managed to kill one hundred owls single handily in his first five years..."

"No, no, no, it was a hundred and twenty owls!" Another Pure One corrected.

"Na-huh, it was a hundred and fifty!" One of other owls said in the group.

"IT DOESN'T MATTER!" The first one screeched, and then calmed himself and said, "I don't know all the details about him, but if you get pitted against him...may Glaux have mercy on your soul." He finished with a ominous feeling, as he went back to talk to the other owls.

Nyra didn't know what to say to that warning, but now she was scared, she was grateful to that one owl for standing up for her...but why? She never met him, and her father (when he took a day or two off to visit them) never mentioned him. She didn't know what to think, and would have ask around, but Zephyr had just finished inspecting the last recruit, "Accepted, and that should be the last of them."

Then the king said, while turning to face the new recruits and the soldiers, "Now, as you soldiers may know, it is now time for our initiation matches. I will choose a recruit to step onto the battlefield, and then I will call forth one of our own soldiers, who? You will find out soon enough." Then he started to look through the recruits...well he pretended to, as he maliciously knew who to send up first. "How about our sole female, Nyra? It would be just cruel to have her wait through all these fights, just to fail and having to go home after all those hours."

The female gave a slight glare at the king for doubting her and for picking her out, as she then walked out to one end of the arena, as she awaited her opponent, while praying inwardly "_Please not Surtr, please not Surtr, please not Surtr..._"

Zephyr then said, "And your opponent will be..." as he gave a glance to a certain Sooty Owl Pure One in the crowd, as that owl made his way to the other end of the battlefield, as Nyra immediately recognized the black owl, and the king said, with a bit of amusement in his voice, "None other than General Surtr, the strongest soldier of all the Pure Ones.

Nyra's blood froze when she heard the name, as she received a good look at the general, his black feathers shined in the moonlight, and could tell that by his strong posture and authoritative expression that he was well-tempered. She asked with fear, "You're...Surtr?"

The Sooty Owl gave a mere chuckle and smirked, "Guilty..." as his smirk quickly faded as he said, "So...you are the daughter that Lucius always talked about, I got to say, I can see a resemblance between you and him. It saddens me that I will have to harm a beautiful young lady such as yourself."

"Hey, I am not just another pretty face!" Nyra spat with a glare, she was afraid of what he was capable of, but if her father taught her anything before his death, it was to never let anyone, especially someone of the opposite sex, intimidate you, "I will not be stared down by a pompous male."

Surtr chuckled, "Beautiful _and_ fierce, a deadly combination, but I assure you, my reputation may precede me, I am many things, but pompous isn't one of them."

"Surtr..." Lord Zephyr said with annoyance, "We would like a fight anytime now..."

The general gave a minor sideways glare at his king, and said, "Very well, don't think I will go easy on you because you are Lucius' daughter, _or _the fact that you are the female."

"Wouldn't have it any other way." Nyra responded with a smug smirk.

(**Now I recommend that you play the piano rendition of the Final Fantasy VII battle music (the one played in Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, during Tifa and Loz's fight)**)

The black owl gave a smirk back, and said, "Ladies first..."

Nyra, complying to his courtesy, made the first move and swipe at him with her right claw, but Surtr dodged it with ease, and retaliated with a wicked left talon punch, sending her sprawling to the ground, with a bit of blood in her beak. She was tearing up a little, and the Sooty Owl said with a half-apologetic, half-unamused look, "I said I wouldn't go easy."

"_Glaux damn it, he hits hard...of course he hits hard, he's a sprinking male!_" She thought to herself, as a few cheers were made by the soldiers, "_Damn it, Nyra, get it together, a true fighter never goes down in one hit!_" she said with determination in her mind, as she picked herself up, astonishing the ebony owl.

"Impressive, not many females are known to take the first punch of a male and still standing," Surtr said.

However, Nyra's talons spoke for her as she then lunged at the owl (who was surprised by her sudden ferocity), swinging her talons left and right as Surtr stepped back to avoid it, but he was running out of room to move back as Nyra swung her right talon upward in a flip kick, hitting the tyto square in the beak.

This prompted a few gasps, as the male stumbled back a bit into the crowd that surrounded the arena, and he was quickly pushed back in, as he swiped the blood from his beak, "_Damn, that smarts...this girl is definitely Lucius's daughter, well, no more holding back,_" he admitted.

"What the matter, General? Already tuckered out by a female?" Nyra taunted, it wasn't usually her style to brag, but she needed to mean business, especially to the king, who was watching with intrigue.

"You're have one mean kick, I'll give you that, but I was just playing with you, but now, as the young ones would say...it is on..." Surtr glowered, as he then pushed forward, as he slapped her HARD with his right wing, then hit his head against her, leaving her a bit dazed.

"Damn it..." Nyra muttered, as she gripped her head, but there was no time to rest, as she jumped to his side as he swept his right talon down, then, despite her throbbing headache, she rammed him into another side of the arena, where they were both pushed back into the center by the now uproaring crowd, as the Sooty Owl was now on top of her.

"Now isn't this an interesting turns of events?" Surtr quipped.

Nyra herself was a little flustered as she felt a bit of the owl's muscles, "_My glaux, he is strong...Focus, you need to get him off, stat!_" as she then shoved him in the gizzard (not the jewels, as her mother taught her to only incapacitate a male's ability to mate when they try to rape you) as she rolled out from under him.

Not wasting time to recover from that blow, Surtr was back on to his feet as he went on the offensive, as he swung his wings to slap her (not as hard as before), as he leapt left and right to dodge Nyra's frantic swipes, then he sidestepped the white Barn Owl when she charged, and gave a playful hit in the tailfeathers.

"You DARE hit a woman there?" Nyra screeched, offended by the touch (while a little aroused, but that was aside the point).

"This is a battle, Nyra, like it or not, your opponent will try to get a hit in whenever, whether it is a serious blow to the face, or a minor tap to the feathers, no offense intended." Surtr explained, while having the smirk from earlier.

The she-owl didn't get this owl at all, one instant he is charming, next he is a typical male, what is his deal? Before she could think anymore into it, she jumped back to dodge a swipe of his left talon, then she rammed him hard in the abdomen, sending both of them flying back, hovering a little off the ground, then Nyra, seeing an opportunity, then grab his side with her talons (while they are in midair) and push off him, bashing his back into the floor while she leapt over him (**Based off a part of the same fighting sequence between Tifa and Loz**). She was about to smirk when suddenly Surtr (groaning in pain from that attack) grabbed one of her talon and with a swing of his head, swung her around and sent her bouncing off the ground.

Nyra groaned, as her body was practically aching, never before had she ever felt this much pain. Surtr, on the other hand, was used to cuts and bruises, but it been ages since anyone had gave him a good beating, he knew deep inside that she is entitled a place in their ranks, but unfortunately, she had to beat him, and judging from her stature as she got back up, as she wobbled, she couldn't possibly take any more punishment...there was only one thing to do.

Giving a roar, he charges at her with all his strength, Nyra's eyes widened, her mind begging her to get out of the way, but her body refused to move, as she watch her opponent approaching fast with horror. However, not willing to go down without a fight, she spread her wings and braced herself as she caught the general, while pushing her back a bit, and felt Surtr's wings gripping her own, as they struggled to push the other off.

The moment was so tense, it was shocking when Nyra heard, "I was hoping you would try this..." She look at Surtr in the eyes (which were a handsome gold), and before she could reply, he asked, "How much do you want to be one of us?"

Nyra looked at him confused, as she struggled to keep in place, as she then said with pleading eyes, "More than anything, just a chance to avenge my father..."

Surtr chuckled as he then whispered in her ear, "Follow my lead..." as all of a sudden, he pushed off from her and hit the ground with a 'THUD!' and let out a false groan. Everyone, including Zephyr, was in astonishment.

"Oh my glaux! She just beat Surtr!" A Pure One shouted.

"You...er..." Another soldier was about to shout, before realizing he didn't know the word to say. (**Attempted OMG You Kill Kenny!**)

"Well, well, I guess I was wrong about you, Nyra, welcome to the family..." Zephyr nodded as he approached the female, "Surtr must have been slacking lately, so I suppose extra training in is order for you, don't you think, General?" he looked over to the Sooty Owl, who to his surprise, is back up as if he was fine.

He said, "Yes, milord, but I like to make a request...I would like to become Nyra's mentor in the ways of the Pure Ones"

"Mentor?" Zephyr and Nyra both asked at the same time, both astonished, and Zephyr continued, "Why though, aren't you already training that one boy? You think you can handle this feisty female?" While giving the now-glaring she-owl an amused look.

"Don't worry, my king, I _owe_ it to her and her father that she is trained to the best _by _the best," the Sooty Owl smirked, then he gave a look to Nyra, "Now, if you excuse me, your majesty, I will escort her to my hollow."

With a bow to the king, and a gesture to Nyra, the two were walking away (as both are still aching from the fight), as Zephyr said to the astonished crowd (who were now starting to see her in a _different _way), "Well? Don't gawk at her, she will be training here from now on, now let's get the next match going..."

A few minutes later, they were in the elite's training grounds, where a couple of owls were busy training without rest, but started to take notice of the white female following their general, but before they could say anything, Surtr screeched, "Proceed with your training or I will make you do double!" Nyra was impressed with how the owls stop and went back to training, she now knew that he wasn't someone you should anger.

Soon, they entered what seems to be a wide tunnel with hollows dotted along the sides, as she noticed no one was in them, and asked, trying to make conversation, "So...where is everyone?"

"Oh, they are either down at the normal training grounds watching fresh meat get the crud beat out of them, or out training back on the elite's training grounds, we usually training and on duty on a 7-3 basis (**like our 9-5**), but my hollow isn't here, it is further along this path." Surtr explained.

Soon, the wide tunnel open up to a curving open hallway along the side of Le Pilier de la Suprématie's upper back side, with pillars spread evenly apart with openings in between, (**like that in a Greek temple**) as the two owls continued along the path, as Nyra saw the ocean with awe, as the Sooty Owl said, "Beautiful sight, isn't it? That is why I live out here, you can never get tired of a view like this," as he too smirked, but then said, "We should continue on, my hollow isn't far now," He was correct as at what seems to be the end of the hallway, there was a hole within the side of the hall.

"I like to welcome you to my hollow..." Surtr presented with his wings, as they walked in. The hollow was bigger than most hollows Nyra had been in, and had multiple rooms in it, one room was straight ahead, one was to the left and one to the right, and the central room itself was big.

"Roomy..." Nyra said, as she looked around.

"Well, get used to it, because you will be sleeping here." The Sooty Owl stated.

"Here?" The white Barn Owl repeated, feeling a little awkward, "You mean...with you?"

"Oh..." Metalbeak gasped, realizing what he just said, "No, not with me, but in a separate room from mine..." then an awkward silence ensued, and then he said, "Could you wait here a moment, I need to get you something..." as he walked off in the room straight forward inside.

Nyra, finally alone, then let out a sigh, as her body was began to ache from the fight, and wipe off any blood off her beak. She walked further in while looking around as she thought; she couldn't believe that she was actually now part of the Pure Ones, it was like a dream come true...but a few questions lingered in her head, one, why did someone, let alone the general, stood up for her? Two, what will her life be like now? And three, why Surtr faked his defeat, when he had her beat?

Before she could think anymore, she heard flapping and turned around to see another owl, who was also unmasked, flew in, and shouted (**his voice is that of Lucas Gilbertsen, who voiced Zero in Megaman X8 and Command Mission**) "Hey, Surtr! It was a battle, but I took care of them damn bats!" but then he noticed the beautiful female who was looking at him with intrigue to his left, and jumped, while he stuttered, "W-Who are you?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Nyra replied, as she observed the new male, he was a Sulawesi Masked Owl, a rare kind of owl, had a strong frame, not as strong as Surtr but still strong, and his eyes were that of light silver, he was actually kind of handsome, not to mention his personality was that of a cute shy bird, a welcoming change compared to the last few male owls (Surtr not included) she had met.

Before the male could reply, Surtr shouted "Maurice? Is that you?" as he returned to the main room.

"Uh, sir, why is there a girl in our hollow?" The Sulawesi Masked Owl stuttered as he looked at the general and the new female.

"Simple, lad, this here is Nyra, she is one of our new recruits, she just finished defeating your truly in a fight." Surtr smirked.

"What?! You, the great Surtr, by a girl?!" he said astounded, but quickly added, "No offense to you," to Nyra, who merely nodded, and continued, "The others are going to give you hagsmire about this..."

"The others can burn in hagsmire for all I care," the black owl stated matter-of-factly, "Besides, I am their general and commanding officer, any sass they give me, they will be flying laps around the pillar a hundred times."

"Uh...if you don't mind me asking, general," Nyra asked, while trying to remain respectful, "Who is this owl?" she gestured to the newcomer.

"Nyra, I like you to meet your fellow trainee and new hollow den mate, Maurice," Surtr introduced, as the younger male owl nodded, "He has been training under me for six years, and is now sergeant. Don't let his wimpy and shy exterior fool you, he is quite the fighter."

"Oh, sir," The owl said while rubbing the back of his head with his right wing, "I owe it to you that I got this far."

"You're being too modest, Maurice," The general smirked, "By the way, Nyra, here's the things you need," He said as he toss to Nyra's feet a pair of sharpened battle claws, and a typical Pure One helm. Nyra picked up the helm and sniff it a bit before grimacing, as Surtr said, "I recommend that you don't wear the helm, it's reeks of rats and ash, it's a wonder why some even wear it," He chuckled, before picking up her claws, "It is these beauties that you should wear, they aren't diamonds, but these..." he paused as he then took one of Nyra's talons, and placed the battle claw on it (**Cinderella style**), prompting a little blush from Nyra, "...claws are your best allies in combat, without them, you might as well be a chicken." Surtr continued, as he placed the other claw on Nyra, prompting a little chuckle from him and Nyra.

"Well thank you...but I must ask, why did you fake your defeat? You had me beaten" She asked Surtr.

"Faked? You mean...you weren't actually defeated by a girl?" Maurice questioned, astounded.

"No, but no one else need to know that," Surtr said, "I did it because I truly believe that you could be one of the greatest soldiers here, and I wasn't going to let the ignorance of a king stop that. Just...don't think because I was willing to get you in mean I will take it easy when it comes to training you, you have to earn your keep here." The Sooty Owl said sternly.

"Yes, sir, I will try my best," Nyra said with a bow, "General," as she got up and was about to move when she noticed how heavy her battle claws were.

Surtr smirked, "Don't worry, it takes time to get used to battle claws. But now that you have met Maurice, allow me to properly introduce myself, I am Surtr, the general of the Pure Ones, and your mentor, and I shall be treated as such. When you address me in training, it shall either be by 'Sir' or 'General', only when we are on breaks, and when I am in a good mood that you shall call me by my name. Now, since there's an hour or two left of moonlight left, we should hit the elite's training grounds."

"Elites?" Nyra asked, as she tried to pick up her talons, "But, shouldn't I be training with the others down in the normal training ground?"

"Not when you are with me, lass," The old owl chuckled, "All owls mentored by me get trained in the elite's area, now, let's get the lead out!" He screeched as left the hollow, "You too, Maurice!" he added.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Maurice," Nyra said to the Sulawesi Masked Owl as they left the hollow.

"You too, I never actually seen another female for a long time," Maurice said, as they followed Surtr back down the open hallway, "It will be interesting to actually have someone else to talk to."

"You don't talk to Surtr and the other soldiers?" The white Barn Owl asked with concern.

"Well, I never get along with the soldiers, and General always like to keep to himself. I never really had a friend before, being an orphan and all." Maurice said with sadness.

"Orphan?" Nyra repeated, a little shocked.

"Yeah, my mother died before I was born, and my father...I never knew him, all I remember was being left at a hollow for orphans, and being taken in by the mistress. I was there for sixteen years, never adopted, and everyone usually steer clear of me, because they thought there was something wrong with me." Maurice explained, as he felt his eyes start to tear, but then he smirked, "Then he came...Surtr came in one day looking for an owl of 'exceptional promise', and when he saw me, he, unlike everyone else, smiled upon me and said that I had fire in my eyes, and with that, he took me under his wing and train me ever since, and for that, I was forever grateful to him...but I was still alone somehow." Maurice finished, with a sad smile.

"Well...if you want, I can be your friend." Nyra offered, with a happy expression.

"Really?" Maurice looked up with glee, "Thank you, that's means a lot...but that doesn't mean I won't take it easy on you once we get to the training field."

"Okay, but I must warn you, I am a fierce fighter." Nyra warned playfully, and the two laughed.

Surtr looked back and smirked at the two owls, and said, "_I promise you Lucius, I will make a Pure One out of her, and when I do, she will do you proud..._"

_One year later... (**Seven years earlier from present**)_

Since that night, Nyra had become friends with Maurice, Surtr's other apprentice, as they both worked and trained under the watchful eye of the general, as the white Barn Owl started to grow stronger with experience as she sparred with Maurice and many other owls (and a few times with Surtr himself, because she wanted to beat him on her own), and soon, she was nineteen, and was able to wield her battle claws with ease.

Her first year had been riddled with trails, as she was trained in talon-to-talon combat, aerial combat, hunting, and especially how to be more intimidating, which worked like a charm on any owl, who were now trying to woo her, since her now-good battle prowess made her most desirable, not to mention her beauty was unsurpassable, except by her mother. Speaking of whom, she hadn't seen her mother ever since her first night as a Pure One, and she surely miss her a lot, but it wouldn't be a problem anymore tonight.

As Surtr had explained to her, every Pure Ones are trained all their first year so come the second year, they are sent out on their first patrol around the Pure Ones' territory, fortunately for them, they were allowed to visit with any family member and such in this time, as long they return by midnight for debriefing, her father had used this time almost all every chance he could to visit them, but due to how far Beaks was from the Pillar, his time was very limited, but since Nyra was young, she bet she could get an hour or two of visitation, and she hoped she could introduce her mother to her new friend and her mentor (also friend).

As the sun sets, Surtr made it a habit to get up as soon as sunlight started to fade from his hollow, so he could stir Nyra up, since she wasn't used to the early hours, even after a year, he smirked as he remembered doing the same thing for Maurice when he was still wet behind the ear hole, but surprise was waiting for him when he saw Nyra and Maurice, battle ready, well, he was surprised to see Nyra ready.

"Nyra? How...why...what are you doing up before me?" Surtr asked, mystified.

"Well, sir, tonight is the night when we go on our first patrol, and I want to be ready to head out soon, so I got up before Maurice did." Nyra answered cheerfully.

Surtr looked at his apprentice with admiration, and said, "I do admire your enthusiasm, you are well on your way to sergeant at this rate."

"Yeah, I just been going over a few things with her before we took flight," Maurice explained, since he was a Pure One at a younger age than most males, he had an extra two years on Nyra, but he was willing to share any knowledge he had gain over the years.

"That was awful kind of ya, just give me a few minutes to loosen up, and we'll be ready to fly," The Sooty Owl said, as he cricked his neck and let out a sigh of relief, and said with narrowing eyes, "Let's fly..."

Ten minutes and preliminary checking before flight, Nyra and the two male owls were out flying through Talon's Breach as the female owl was playfully maneuvering in the sky as Maurice and Surtr watched, as the younger male said, "Glaux, she remind me of when I first went on patrol, although I doubt I was this excited."

"Well she has a mother back home, and I suppose anyone would be excited to be seeing their family," Surtr said, returning his sight to Nyra as she twirled around, and all he could do was sigh, she was so beautiful and young and free-spirited; anyone would be lucky to have her for a mate, but the only male owls that she actually liked was him and Maurice, and knowing how the pairing of couples work, he had little to no chance against his apprentice, but he harbored no resentment towards him, she would be lucky to have him for a husband...

His thought was interrupted when Maurice asked, "Do you think she will like me?"

"What?" Surtr asked, mystified.

"Nyra's mother? I know she is planning on introducing us to her, and I want to make a good first impression, since most owls seem to be afraid of me." Maurice explained.

"Your guess is as good as mine, I'm no expert on relationships." The general shrugged, as he never really had a relationship before, his life had mainly revolved around progressing up the food chain amongst the Pure Ones, and it didn't help that no female ever wanted to join the Pure Ones.

Nyra, then fell back to see her two fellow comrades and said, "It shouldn't be any further to Beaks now, you guys will love my mother, she is real kind."

"I'm glad you though so…Nyrae (**Nee-ray**)…" Maurice smugly said, prompting a minor glare from Nyra; Nyrae was a name that Maurice and Surtr came up during her first year to fit her high spirits, it is safe to said that Nyra didn't quite approve of the name (but she didn't object).

"Hey, I thought we agreed that I wouldn't be called that." She complained.

"You agreed, we listened," Surtr smugly remarked.

"Oh, ha-ha…" Nyra sarcastically laughed as she pulled ahead once more, then a thunder boomed in the sky prompting everyone to look up at the dark clouds.

"Glaux, it looks like a thunderstorm is coming in, let's hope we can get to Beaks before rain starts coming down." The Sulawesi Masked Owl pointed out.

"Don't worry lad, like Nyra said, we are…" Surtr was saying before pausing, as he started to smell something, a smell that spelt two things, fire and death.

"Is something wrong, general?" Maurice asked, noticing the Sooty Owl's quiet expression.

"Do you smell that?" Surtr asked in reply to Maurice's question.

The two male owls stop and smell the air and the younger owl said, "Wait, that smells like what happen when we burned wood for the blacksmith…it is possible that…this is…"

"OH…MY…GLAUX!" Nyra screamed, interrupting Maurice's sentence as the two owls quickly flew up with Nyra, and both saw the frightening image that the Barn Owl just saw…

The entire forest of Beaks, once so beautiful with orange-colored leaves, was now engulfed in a vicious sea of flames, burning down everything within it. All three of the owls were at a loss of words at this scene. The thunderstorm must have struck a few lightnings into the forest and start a fire that quickly consumed the winds that blew through it.

"Oh glaux…" Surtr merely gasped.

Nyra, seeing her home in flames, then realized, "Mother…MOTHER! MOTHER!" she screamed, as she quickly flew into the forest.

"NYRA! IT'S NOT SAFE!" The general warned after her, but she was gone, and cursed, "DAMN IT! THAT STUPID GIRL GOING TO GET HERSELF KILLED!" then he turned to Maurice, "MAURICE! REPORT BACK TO THE PURE ONES!"

"What about Nyra?!" The young soldier asked, deeply concerned about his fellow comrade.

"THAT IS NOT YOUR CONCERN, YOUR CONCERN IS GETTING HELP! I WILL GET HER! NOW GO!" Surtr screeched, prompting the young Sulawesi Masked Owl to rapidly turn around as he went back to the Pillar, as the Sooty Owl himself sped towards the burning woods…

"MOTHER! MOTHER!" Nyra screeched as she neared the forest, as she did, she began to feel the heat emanating from the flames, and the smoke started to make her cough. However, she ignored it as she tried to find her tree, darting her eyes left and right hoping to see any resemblance. Then amongst the burning ashes on the floor, she saw white…

She quickly swooped down to the floor (while getting a bit of soot on her feathers), as she quickly approached the unconscious white figure sprawled upon the ground, and saw that it was her mother, "MOTHER!" Nyra said, trying to stir her awake.

The older white Barn Owl coughed, as she opened her eyes, and said weakly, "Nyra? Baby, is that you?"

"Yes, mother, I came back…" Nyra answered, as tears struck her eyes.

The mother (also tearing up) smiled, "Did you…were you accepted?"

Nyra nodded, "Yes, mother…I was, but enough about that, let's get you out of here."

However, the mother sighed, "I can't, when the fire started, I fell from the hollow and broke my back…I can barely move. I am lucky to even be living this long…"

"Don't talk like that, my comrades should be here soon, we can get you back to the Pillar, get you fixed up…" Nyra would had said more, but she started to sob.

"Daughter, please…it's too late for me…get out of here while you still can, please." The injured mother begged.

"NO! I already lost father, I can't lose you! Please…I don't want to be alone!" The young Barn Owl cried.

"You won't be…your father and I will always be with you…and I am sure your friends will look after you…" The elder Barn Owl whispered.

"Mother…Ma…please…." Nyra sobbed with tears while coughing.

"Listen to me…I want you to find someone to love…a mate, a mate that will always be there for you…who love you…" The mother said as she weakly lifted her right wing to wipe her daughter's tears.

Then a lightning struck the tree (which was Nyra's home) they were next to, and the tree was moments away from falling over them.

"Nyra…go…" Nyra's mother weakly said, as her eyes grew heavy,

"Ma…ma, please!" The young Barn Owl cried, not paying heed to the crumbling tree

"I love you…" The elderly whispered with her last breath, as her eyes closed for the last time…

"Mother? Mother?! MOTHER! NO!" Nyra screamed, as she cried into her dead mother's feathers and the tree began to fall over. It would had landed and crushed Nyra…had not a black blur quickly grabbed and flew her out of the way.

Nyra quickly looked at the fallen tree where her mother was, and then looked at the furious eyes of her general, as he yelled, "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?! YOU WOULD HAVE DIED?! DO YOU HAVE NO REGARDS WHATSOEVER FOR YOUR HEALTH?!"

The white Barn Owl wanted to answer, but the death of her mother was too great, as all she could get out was whimpers as tears fell from her eyes, as she then said, "She's gone, Surtr…my mother is dead…" as she then cried in his chest feathers.

Normally, Surtr would have push away any owl who would touch him and reprimand them, but this owl wasn't just any owl, it was a young beautiful creature who just lost someone very close to her, and he wasn't that cold to not comfort her. Surtr, with a sad smile, placed his wings around her and embrace her, as he whispered into her ear-hole, "It's okay…it's okay…" as rain started to fall onto the forest, dousing the flames of the once-beautiful forest of Beaks. Soon Nyra's sobs had become silent, and seeing how hard it was raining, Surtr said, "Let's go home…" Nyra nodded as she and him left the sizzling remnants of the forest…

An hour later, both of them returned to the Pillar of Supremacy, before anyone, especially Maurice, could ask what had happened, the Sooty Owl ignored them and sped her and himself up to his hollow. When they arrived, the general said, "I'll have them give you the next couple nights off, so it would be best that you get some rest...as for me, I have to report to the king about what had happen…"

But as he was about to leave, Nyra, still shaken and hurt from what had happened, merely asked, "Could you please stay with me, at least for the night? I just don't want to be alone right now…"

The general stopped a bit, and looked at her, as she gave him pleading eyes, and he knew deep inside that he couldn't said no, Zephyr would be peeved at him, but he could care less, as all that mattered right now was taking care of the beautiful white Barn Owl he was mentoring. "Of course…" as they both head into the female's room.

There was a slight awkwardness after both of them took off their claws and lay down, Surtr had never once sat next to an owl before…well at least when not hiding in a cramp space from enemies. To make matters worse, this was a female owl, and a very young one at that, and the fact he was actually starting to have a crush on her.

"_This is wrong…she is less than half your age, that would make you a sick pedophile..._"One side of Surtr's mind scolded

His other half said otherwise "_So? Many owls usually took very young owls to be their brides, that is sort of a Pure One custom…_"

But the other conscience said, "_And who said that the Pure Ones are morally sound? Remember the things with the bats?_"

The bolder conscience then answered, "_Of sprinking course I remember 'the things with the bats', we were both there, hagsmire, everyone was there! Besides…_"

Before that one conscience could finish that thought, Nyra snuggled up to Surtr (prompting him to stiff up), and asked, with a bit of tears in her eyes, "Sir…could you promise me something?"

"Er…what, Nyra?" The Sooty Owl asked, slightly mystified.

"Promise me that you will never leave…that you, me, and Maurice will always stay together, no matter what." Nyra said, as she then yawned and dozed off.

Those few words touched him, and made him forget what his conscience was mulling over, as he then put his right wing over her, and whispered in her ear-hole, not knowing whether or not she was awake, "I promise…"

_One year later... (**Six years earlier from present**)_

Another year had passed since that night; after the fire was doused, all that was left was charred remains of trees and singed corpses of the unfortunate owls that didn't make it out. There were survivors, but they were all scattered to the wind and forgotten, and Beaks became nothing more than one of the many dead forests that were found in the territory. It was a horrible tragedy to the new recruits that hailed from the forest, but it affected Nyra the most out of everyone.

The event had still haunted her to this day, as Nyra, now twenty, struggled to move on with her life, however, it proved to be much easier as her friend Maurice and mentor Surtr were there for her. Sure, most owls wouldn't consider a fellow soldier and the general to be much of a family, but to Nyra, they were the only ones she need…

However, as the year passed, the white barn owl's body had progressed more to that of a young beautiful she-owl, and her voice (**now she has her original voice from the movie**) had become that of what some owl would said an angel. This prompted a few problems to Nyra, as being the only female within the army, and more importantly, without a mate, many owls had attempted to court her, ranging from a simple flirtatious comment to practically breaking another owl's back to show off (and overdoing it by accidentally paralyzing them); but by taking her mother's advice to heart, she either ignore them or gave them a threatening glare that now (with Surtr's help) pierce into one's soul. That was not the problem...it was something a bit more personal...

As known throughout life, every species has a season where they find a mate and for Nyra...it was that time of the year. It was especially bad due to being surrounded by very...assertive males who would leap at the chance to mount her, but that wasn't the other problem (this heat made her needy, not desperate).

The _other_ problem was that it was bringing up some..._feelings_ that she shouldn't have around the two males she actually trust, especially her general, as she started to feel the most uncomfortable around him. Ever since that night they spent together, she felt odd, as if...she was starting to fall in love with him. She shook it off however, there was no way he could return such feelings, especially given the fact that he was over twenty years older than her, it just couldn't be, could it?

Nyra was busy pondering such thoughts while walking towards the training grounds, when Maurice, who was accompanying her, snapped her out of it, "Nyra? Are you alright?"

"Oh..." Nyra quickly responded, "I am just fine."

Maurice gave her a questioning look before continuing, "Anyway...I have this one joke that I been wanting to tell you for a while."

"Oh really?" The Barn Owl said unenthusiastically, she was never one for jokes, as she usually never understand them, but since this was her friend...

"Okay, why is a raven like a writing desk?" Maurice asked, with a cunning smile. (**Alice in Wonderland reference!**)

Nyra gave him a mere 'huh?' look, and said, "I don't know, what kind of question is that?"

Maurice chuckled, "Simple, my friend, I read it once in a book, apparently it was a riddle that this one crazy..." before he could finish his sentence, he and Nyra just walked into one of the open hallways, and the moonlight that was shining reflected off her feathers, giving her such a heavenly glow, and all Maurice could do was stare. It was pretty obvious when Maurice first met Nyra, he was all surprised and nervous, as he never actually interacted with a female, the only ones he ever saw were children back at the orphanage, but due to some odd reason, everyone tend to avoid him. But her...Nyra was the first owl that was willing to be friends with him, aside from Surtr, who was more like a father to him, and given what had happened over the two years, he was quite infatuated with her, and given that the season was here, he felt his heart thumping in his chest as he stared at the beautiful owl.

"Uh...Maurice?" Nyra asked, as she noticed the Sulawesi Masked Owl's blank expression.

The male Pure One snapped out of it and said, "Oh, sorry, I guess I got sidetracked..." while blushing a little. Nyra gave an understanding nod, she knew that due to the season, females usually gave off pheromones that would cause any male owl to act strangely, and Nyra knew that her friend was no exception, and unlike the others, he was gentleowl enough to keep his emotions at bay, and not get the best of him.

"Well, we should hurry up, if I learn anything, we shouldn't keep our general waiting," Nyra said, as they continued towards the training grounds...

Meanwhile, down at the grounds, an owl just been flipped _hard_ onto the ground by the said general, panting, as he then gathered himself, saying to the other owls who were watching this demonstration, "Now, _that's_ how you take down an opponent," as they clapped at the demonstration.

Then, he sees his two excellent apprentices come in and smirked, as he approached them and said, "Nice for the two new _lieutenants_ to finally join us!" The two young owls smirked, indeed, they had both were promoted to the ranks of lieutenants due to their excellent skill and mastery over the two years, and (according to rumors) to some words from Surtr himself.

"Sorry, I guess we lost track of time..." Maurice said, rubbing the back of his head.

Surtr chuckled, as he approached the two, "Oh that doesn't matter, just don't let it happen again..." he trailed off when he neared Nyra, for as Maurice acted earlier, the Sooty Owl began to feel odd around her, but unlike him, Surtr had greater difficulties keeping his thoughts of her under control, as he started taking shaky breaths. As much as he wanted to stop, being near her was like what the Others called a drug, he just couldn't get enough of her.

This prompted a concerned look from Maurice, "Uh, sir, are you alright?" he asked.

Fortunately, this snapped Surtr out of his reverie as he corrected himself, "Yes, just taking a breather. Anyway, Nyra, there is actually something I wanted to show you, since you had been here for over two years."

"Really...what?" Nyra asked, as she felt herself staring at the owl's rugged features (and unbeknownst to her, being aroused).

"Well, I can't just tell you, I have to show you. Just follow me back to the hollow and all shall be revealed." Surtr chuckled as he spread his wings, and quickly said, "Maurice, I reckon you can take the training from here?"

"Of course, just don't be long, captain," Maurice said, as he went over to the training field, as Surtr (with a nod) took flight with Nyra tailing him, as Maurice looked back and merely sighed...

Soon, Surtr and Nyra were back in their hollow, and the general gestured to his room. The young female owl realize that this 'thing' must be really important, for the two years she knew the Sooty Owl, he had never allowed her nor Maurice into his chamber, either that or...Nyra shook the thought. Soon, they were both in the said chamber, which was kinda cluttered in Nyra's opinion, as there were books everywhere, all of them old and tattered, and well-read.

"I apologize for the mess, I've been meaning to clean this place up, but with my schedule, I couldn't find the time..." Surtr said with a bit of shame.

"So...is this what you wanted to show me?" Nyra asked, with a bit of disappointment."

"Oh, not at all, this is where we need to go!" Surtr reassured her, as he guided her towards the center of the room, as he began clearing off some of the books off this rug he had. As Nyra waited, she looked at the books next to his bed, ones she reckoned that her general read recently. The first one was 'Advanced War Tactics', she rolled her eyes and smirked, he was always looking to improve himself, she moved it aside, and saw that the second one was called 'The Studies of Glaux', Nyra gave a pondering expression, she never knew him to be religious. When she moved the second book, she was taken aback, the last book was a book on the union between two owls, named 'The Unity of Two Owls', and even more, it was book marked. She looked back at her general, who was still clearing off some books (**There was a lot**), and quickly opened the book to the marked page.

Then she was even more shocked, as she saw the contents; it was a page on how two owls would become mates, and noticed a certain line, 'a year after the beginning of a relationship is a primal time when the male usually ask for the female's talon in marriage'. She then thought to herself, "_Glaux...how long has he been..._"

Before she could think anymore, she heard a voice, "Like what you are reading?" Nyra quickly turned around to see her general looking at her with a smug smirk.

"Oh, sorry, I was looking at your collection," Nyra quickly stammered, "I got to say, it is very impressive."

"Thank you, since the Pure Ones hardly make use of the library, I usually check out a couple books at a time, but since there were no librarians...I simply just keep them here for quick reference." Surtr explained.

"Really?" Nyra said, when she said to herself, "_We have a library?_"

Surtr nodded, as he then said, "Well, it is high time I show you something..." as he then gripped the rug, and continued, "Before I do, I should tell you, what you are about to see is to not to leave this hollow, am I clear?" Nyra nodded, and he smirked, "Good," as he tore the rug off the floor to reveal a trap door, and he opened it as he explained, "When I was first starting out, I found this door in my room, and being the curious owl I was, I looked behind it and you wouldn't believe what I saw."

"What?" The white Barn Owl questioned.

"Well...see for yourself," Surtr answered, as he opened the trap door, "Ladies first," the general said, as Nyra slowly step past the door, as it opened up into a winding tunnel, as she suddenly felt a strong breeze blow through her feathers, and nearly fell back when Surtr caught her and said, "Be careful, it is very windy where we're going."

Nyra gave him a minor 'thank you' before continuing onwards, as she follow the winding path, with Surtr right behind her. She asked, "How much further it is?"

"Not far...you should be saying 'Oh my glaux' in three...two...one..." Surtr counted down.

And as if on cue, when Nyra felt moonlight shined upon her as she saw a wondrous sight, "Oh...my...glaux..." she said.

The sight was like that of a cove, as there was an opening that reveal the Hagsfiend's Sea, but the view was much different from that when you view it from outside the hollow, as you could see more of the sea, as it was very expansive, and as if Surtr planned it, the moon was starting to set, making a long beautiful white streak that stretch across the calm seas and shone upon the cave she and Surtr was occupying.

Nyra was at a major loss of word, as she stared in awe, and Surtr gave a smirk as he watched her expression as well as admiring the moonlight shining off her feathers, making her shone as much as she did a bit ago, and the Sooty Owl couldn't take his eyes off her. It especially didn't help since that Nyra was going through that_ time _of the year, enhancing his desires..."_My glaux, she is like an angel fallen from Glamoria...oh, what I wouldn't give to touch her precious body..._" His bold conscience said.

Then his other conscience interrupt, "_Oh dear glaux, what is __**wrong**__ with you?! She is your old friend's daughter, not some random beautiful owl, she is way too young for you._"

The bold conscience rebutted, "_For crying out loud, are we seriously going to fight over this again? Who cares if it is wrong, you love her, don't you?_"

The sensible conscience replied, "_Of course, but you wouldn't have a chance with her, most women prefer a man around their age, and sorry to say, many other owls have a better chance than you..._"

Sick of all the mind games his two halves been having, he decided to mentally said, "_Will you two shut up? I am trying to enjoy this moment with her!_" With that said, the two consciences shut up, as he then turned to the beautiful owl next to him and asked while trying to keep his shaky breaths (which had returned) in check, "So...what do you think of the view?"

"Are you kidding? This is amazing! How long have this been here?" Nyra asked, still amazed by the beauty of the cove-like cave.

"Well, to tell you the truth, me and your father had found this when we were both new recruits. We reckoned that this was an old escape route, but when you come here as the moon sets, it is one of most damn beautiful things in the world." Surtr said, while keeping his golden eyes on her, his shaky breaths now becoming more noticeable and his body shaking.

Nyra smirked, as she inwardly thanked her father for finding such a place, "Well either way, it is beautiful..." she said.

"Yes...just like you..." Surtr said, losing all self-control with those three words...

"Excuse me, what was..." Nyra asked, before she felt her general's beak collided with her in seconds, to say the least, she was caught _way_ off guard, as she felt the powerful male owl gripped her shoulder tightly and his tongue explored her beak, as he pressed her against one of the stalagmite on the platform they were standing on. The white barn owl didn't know what to do, it wasn't that she didn't like it, it was the fact that she was afraid of what he would do to her without realizing it, and was about to scream and pound him in the 'jewels' before Surtr blinked and realized what he was doing.

"Oh...glaux, what AM I DOING?" Surtr screeched, as he pushed himself away from her, leaving both of them panting, and him shuddering as he laid back against another stalagmite and muttered, "Oh lord have mercy...I am sick...I am sick, sick, SICK!" as he banged his head back against the rock, as he gritted his beak.

The white barn owl was very uncomfortable with what had happen a minute ago, but she knew that it was her heat that caused this. She mentally kick herself for not realizing that being a male owl who hadn't been with a female all his life, that he had a bit weaker of self-control when around an attractive female, which was unfortunately her. She held no disgust towards him, she couldn't, not against an owl she had feelings for...she approached the older owl, who was covering his face as he cursed himself and said "Look, Surtr, it's alright..."

"NO, IT'S NOT ALRIGHT!" Surtr yelled at her, "I AM SUPPOSE TO BE A MENTOR, TRAINING STUDENTS, NOT SNOGGING (**Harry Potter Half-Blood Prince reference...bad time?**) WITH THEM!"

"No, it's my fault! It is this stupid season! You couldn't control yourself. I just…I didn't realize it would be that bad…I didn't mean to torment you…" Nyra said, as she looked down in shame.

Surtr looked at the beautiful owl and said, "No…it's not your fault…" as he went up to her and grip her left shoulder, as she looked up at him with tear-filled eyes, "It just…" Surtr began to say as he turned to the view, as the moon started to collide with the ocean, signaling that it was nearly morning, "A long time ago, when your father and I found this place, he had told me that he recently had a daughter, a beautiful white owlet. I congratulated him for his achievement but then he asked me a favor…"

"What?" Nyra asked, slightly calming down, as she heard him mention her father.

"He asked me to look after his daughter if something were to happen to him and his wife, to protect her with my life and see to it that she lives a fulfilling life…of course, I agreed, but I never thought that thirteen years later, he would later die in my wings, begging me to keep my promise," Surtr continued, as he felt a bit of tears stinging his eyes, "There, I made it my mission to look after this young owl and make her into one of the greatest Pure One soldier to ever be…but there was a bit of a complication…"

"Complication?" The white barn owl repeated as she felt that he was about to say something very important.

"Yes, I originally thought that looking after his daughter would be simple, but when I first saw her…she was practically an angel sculpted by Glaux himself…" Nyra blushed at the statement, "…yet she had the battle prowess of her father, and ever since that night of the fire, I felt something…something I shouldn't feel…" Surtr finished.

He turned to her and he sighed before confessing, "I love you, Nyra, I always had, the thought of you being with another male makes me want to rip him apart, I want to be with you till the end of days…I wanted you to be my mate."

This prompted a gasp from Nyra, as she was deeply touched by the Sooty Owl's confession, as she felt tears come to her eyes. She wanted to say something, but she couldn't find the words…

This silence seemed like a bad sign for Surtr as he said, "I understand if you don't feel the same way…I just want you to know that no matter what, you will always have a place in my heart…I was already fool enough to think a young beautiful owl as yourself could ever choose an old, grizzled owl like me…"

But what happened next was shocking to the Sooty Owl, as Nyra then gave him a long passionate kiss. Surtr was surprised by this, and was going to ask what she was doing, but he decided to kiss back. The kiss seemed like it went on forever (but it was only two minutes).

When their beaks parted, they both looked at each other with loving eyes, although Surtr was still slightly confused as to why she kissed him, but that was quickly answered as Nyra, with tears still in her eyes, said, "I love you, too…All my life, I have never felt so strongly about someone…and when my mother died, you were there for me…you always believed in me when no one else has…I don't give a damn about our differences…all I care about is being with you…forever and always…I would be honored to be your mate."

(**Cue the song "Look After You" by the Fray, which will be in italics in the next few paragraphs**)

Surtr was now at a loss of words; he never thought that he would ever find love, yet here she was, an owl with the beauty of a goddess, who was willing to be his mate. However, he was unsure of what to do next, according to that one book he was reading, they would have a ceremony, but judging from the look in his to-be mate's eyes, and by the shaking feeling returning to his gizzard, they were both ready to take that one step already…so, without a word, he kissed her once more…

"_If I don't say this now, I will surely break, As I'm leaving the one I want to take_"

The kiss started out passionate enough, then it started to escalate as she braced the general's head, and the general pushed her against the same stalagmite as he did before, as their kiss became more heated and loving…

"_Forgive the urgency, but hurry up and wait, my heart started to separate_"

However, not wanting to catch a cold from the winds, they both returned to the Sooty Owl's room, as they continued their make-out session, as he was now over the white Barn Owl as he nibbled on her neck and asked, with a bit of concern, "Are you sure you are ready to go through with this?"

Nyra looked at him with the most loving (and a bit seductive) eyes, and said, "I have been waiting for you to say those three words, and my mother always told me to find a mate that would always be there for me, and would love me, and you...are him..." as she kissed him deeply once more. And as of that night, two souls was intertwined into one as grand melodious music was orchestrated...

"_Ooh, Ooh, Be my baby, Ohhhhhh_"

_A month later..._

"I now pronounce you owl and wife," the king Zephyr said, as he was officiating the wedding of his well-trusted general and the daughter of his late lieutenant Lucius. A month since that wondrous night, a wedding was organized (under Maurice's supervision, as he was glad to have his surrogate father and best friend together) in the upper hall (the elite's training grounds) to celebrate the union of the two owls, and it went without a hitch.

Surtr and Nyra, both donning necklaces with elegant cloaks (courtesy of the tower's blacksmith), look at each other with loving eyes, and Zephyr said, "You may kiss the bride," and on cue, the couple kissed, sealing their union till death.

Everyone who was at the wedding (which was practically the whole Pure Ones army) cheered and clapped for them, and Maurice (who was dubbed Surtr's best owl) gave a nod in congratulations, but he felt something as he watched the two, giving loving glances at each other, what was it...jealously? He shook the thought as the couple approached him, and Nyra gave him a hug and a peck on the cheek "Thank you so much for having all this arranged."

"Don't mention it, it was the least I could do for my friend and the general, I just wish you weren't the only female that was in the ranks, now I have to wait for the next one to come along." Maurice said, looking down in sadness.

"Don't be glum, lad, I am sure another female will be along soon enough, am I right, love?" Surtr asked his wife.

"Yes, dear..." Nyra answered, as she kissed her new mate once more as the moon had risen upon the lovebirds as a new chapter of their life began...

"_Ooh, Ooh, Be my baby, I'll look after you..._"

_One year later... (**Five years earlier from present**)_

The year following that night was the best year of Nyra's life, as she and Surtr enjoyed their new life as newlyweds. It was quite advantageous that they were both in the same army, as they spent nearly every waking second next to each other. They were practically a match made in Glamoria (if you looked past the age difference), as they were nearly equal in skills, smarts, and many other things. Their nights went the same way as usual (although now they were closer to each other) but every night, as the moon set, Surtr and Nyra made it a habit to visit their 'special spot' when they were done with their daily duties. When they did come to the spot, they talked to each other about many things...

This night was no different as Surtr and Nyra were standing at their spot, cuddling, admiring the moon setting, and Nyra asked, "Dear, what do you reckon we will be doing five years from now?" (**You can guess this. ;)**)

Surtr look at her and said, "I can't say for sure, but there was one thing I had in mind..."

"Really, may I ask what it is?" Nyra asked, with a bit of interest.

The Sooty Owl chuckled as he answered, "Well, I been thinking that we should leave the Pure Ones..."

Nyra looked at him shocked, and screeched, "What?! I don't understand, I thought you enjoy serving them."

"Don't get me wrong, I am honored to be serving a army that had been like a family to me, but I been thinking..." Surtr explained, "You know the Guardians, right?"

Nyra nodded with a serious look, she heard the stories regarding them, they were a group much like them, but instead of believing that the Tytos were superior, they believed in equality. Of course the Pure Ones didn't stand for it, as they clashed from time to time ever since the beginning of time, to protect their beliefs from being smothered by theirs own.

"We are nothing but pawns in a war that was started between the first two leaders of our clan. For years, they had many owls throw their lives on the line just so they can wipe the other from existence, and they don't seem to care how many owls fall. We been fighting their battle for ages..." The Sooty Owl said, with a bit of a grimace.

"What are you saying?" His mate asked with concern.

"I don't want to fight anymore...you and I are mates now, and I cannot bear to think of what would happen if you or I were to perish." Surtr answered, and when he saw Nyra's look of concern and said, "I understand you want to avenge your father...but I'm thinking about when we have our own owlet..." Nyra's look turn to a blush, despite being together for a year, they hadn't ever discuss about when she conceived an egg, but looking at Surtr, she could tell that he was thinking hard about it.

"When we have our son..." Surtr said, before getting a raised brow from Nyra, "...or daughter, I want him or her to grow in a place where they can be healthy and safe..."

"I understand," Nyra interrupted, "and I agree with you...but the question is will they let us leave, and what of Maurice?"

"I sure Lord Zephyr would understand, he is quite understanding...as for Maurice...he is the best owl I had ever trained," The general said, before adding "aside you, of course, my dear," as he then continued, "I will give my position of general to him, he would do me proud, I know it."

Nyra gave a smile as she kissed him, when they heard a clearing of throat. They turned around to find their friend Maurice, with a smug smirk, and Surtr, a little peeved that he interrupted, asked, "Haven't I taught you not to interrupt me and my mate's personal time?"

"Well, the thing is, Lord Zephyr request your presence immediately." Maurice answered, as he turned around to fly out of the cave. Nyra and Surtr looked at each other with confusion as they flew off after him.

In the upper hall, the army was gathered as they stood before the king, who had grown old and weak, and his cloak had tattered over the past year since the union of his best soldier and the sole female, and soon the said couple and Maurice had arrived in front of the group, as they all gave a quick bow, and all the other followed. However, Zephyr merely said, "No need for such formalities...at least, not anymore..."

This prompted a few 'huh?' and Surtr to said, "I don't understand, milord, why is it that you call us all here?"

"Well, Surtr, my old friend, it is said that there is a time 'when a king is to step down and let another rise in his place'...well, tonight is the night I step down..." Zephyr answered, before giving a cough. The army began to whisper among themselves as Surtr and Nyra stared in shock, while Maurice remained indifferent, as if he had seen this coming.

Before the general could say anything, Zephyr continued, "I had already made up my mind. I want to live the last years of my life in peace...but it does bring up an important issue...who would I give my crown to?" Another set of whisperings were made, as Zephyr proceeded, "Well, the owl I am giving my crown to had been here for over twenty years, slain over two hundred owls, partaken in some of our greatest battles…this owl is none other than our own general…Surtr." He finished with a weak smirk.

Everyone then stared at the general, who was in turn surprised by his decision and said, "Me? I don't understand, aren't there any other owls that would be better qualified for this position?"

The king shook his head, "My mind is made up, and I found it best to leave my kingdom in the wings of someone I trust, rather than some stranger owl, beside, you have the best leadership over them, not to mention their respect. The only question is…will you take the reins?" As he finished, he started coughing a little.

Surtr was unsure of what to said. He never thought of him becoming king, he was always satisfied with his position as general (not to mention that becoming king would make him a hypocrite); he then looked to Nyra, who was just as unsure as he was, and was concerned with how this would affect her as well…but then he thought, if he were to become king, he could possibly finally bring this war to rest, and both sides could for once be able to live in peace…

The Sooty Owl then turned back to the king and said with determination, "Yes, I, Surtr, general of the Pure Ones, shall take the crown of the Pure Ones, and rule these lands and it's denizens…"

Zephyr nodded, "I was hoping you would said that, so by the power invested in me, I pass my crown and throne to you…may you rule these lands with respect and nobility and lead the Pure Ones to their destiny…" then he turned to Nyra, who was a bit shocked by her mate's decision, "Since you are mate with the new king, I suppose that would make you queen of the Pure Ones…I apologize for ever doubting your skills," and finally he said, "Soldiers, bow before your new king and queen, all hail King Surtr and Queen Nyra!"

Surtr and Nyra looked behind them, and saw the ones they once called comrades bow before them, and then they looked at Maurice, who was shocked by the turns of events, but nonetheless, he was bowing as well. Zephyr then said, "Now, I bid you all adieu, and may the odds be ever in your favor…" (**Hunger Games reference!**) With that, the king spread his wings and without anyone following him, he flew out of the Pillar and out of the Pure Ones' lives forever…

A few minutes, the owl couple shared a unsure glance, as they stared upon their now-subjects, as Surtr then said, "Uh…at ease, soldiers..." With that, the owls got back up, as Surtr, unsure of what to said next, tried to speak with pride, "Well, now that I am your new leader, so my first course of action is..." the Sooty Owl tried to think of his first command, when he looked at Nyra and Maurice and then smirked, "To establish both my wife and my apprentices as my army's generals, and second-in-commands, so you are to take orders from them as well as me, do I make myself clear?"

The owls made a few whispers, and Maurice, surprised by his once-general's order and said, "Thank you, your majesty..."

"Please, no need for formalities, Maurice, because I am king doesn't mean you have to act different around me, you are much my family as Nyra is my wife." Surtr smiled, then he said to the soldiers, now more confident, "Pure Ones, I may be your king as opposed to your general now, but this does not change things. I have every intention of finishing what our forefathers had started, we shall bring end to this war!"

The army was immediately in an uproar, and one of them said, "All hail Lord Surtr!" as they began to chanting "Surtr! Surtr! Surtr!" as the new king, satisfied with the answer of the many, gave a look to Nyra to follow him, as they went into the king's chamber (**where Skarmoris been in the last few chapters**).

Maurice, seeing the door closed behind them, sighed and then looked back at the group and said, "Well, don't just stand there cheering! Back to work!"

Meanwhile, in the king's chamber, as soon as the door closed, Nyra broke the silence and said, "This was a surprising turn of events..." while giving a questioning look at her beau.

"Look...I know what I had said earlier, and I still stand by it..." Surtr explained, "But I promise you, I have my reasons...now that I am king, I could possibly end this war. I just want the best for our child and our country..."

"I understand, love," Nyra said, while putting one of her wings up to his face, "The wife always stand behind her husband's decision, no matter what. I just never thought that you and I could actually become rulers of an entire territory...you think that I could be a good queen?"

Surtr shrugged, "It's too early to say...but..." as he placed his right wing around his mate, "I already had leadership skills to begin with, and they know to respect the ground we walk on. They would be foolhardy to dare disobey us. If that doesn't qualifies us as king and queen, I don't know what will."

The white Barn Owl smiled, reassured by her husband's words, as she then gave a devious smirk, "You know...being a ruler does have it perks...women have been known to be attracted to men with power…not to mention that the name 'Lord High Tyto Surtr' has a good ring to it…" as she got up close to him, nuzzling his chin.

Catching on to her act, he returned a mischievous smirk, "Say that again, for your new king…" he crooned, as he started to nibble her neck a little.

"Lord…High…Tyto…Surtr…" Nyra said slowly as they broke into a heated kiss, and began their new life as king and queen, as they attempted to create an heir to their newly-obtained kingdom…

* * *

**A/N: Okay, this was part one of Nyra's past, where we actually learn quite a bit about our favorite white Barn Owl, as well as a backstory to Beaks, the forest where Soren and Kludd had their ultimate confrontation in the movie, I actually made Beaks once a Autumnwood (Thank you, Pokemon Rumble Blast!). We also meet Metalbeak before he was called Metalbeak, as he is named Surtr (Crazybird101 found the name within the intro to the game of this movie), and we also meet the ruler before Metalbeak, Zephyr, a Barn Owl (who plays a minor role) as well as Maurice, a Sulawesi Masked Owl, be sure to pay attention to him, as he plays a bigger role than he seems in this story…There is also Nyra's mother (unnamed) and Lucius, Nyra's father, these characters also have minor roles but I might do a oneshot regarding Lucius and Metalbeak. I hope you MetalbeakxNyra fans enjoyed the romantic moments between the two (Those who hate the movie Metalbeak can go…read a book). This brings me to another question, would you guys be offended or happy if I made a M-Rated fic regarding the unseen scenes between Surtr and Nyra? (I am willing to do so after this fic is done, if you guys want it). As for Surtr and Nyra's age difference, I had to seek advice from Mic O'Malley about it, and he said that owls in that time chose young brides, thus giving us these two, and therefore, you might had noticed in the past chapters about both her and Metalbeak being young and Ezylryb calling her old lady, this was before I figured out...and I don't know how mating season for owls work, so I went with my guts...feel free to correct me on that…if I miss any other important issues, please let me know. Well, READ AND REVIEW!**

_**Artwork stuff are appreciated**_


	15. A Promise Broken

**A/N: Okay guys, I am glad to give you another update to make up for my two weeks absence by posting this chapter, so here is part two of Nyra's past (originally one with chapter fourteen), where we will go into the infamous Battle of the Ice Claws, and have some angst moments leading up to what Metalbeak had become and what become of Maurice...well, enjoy! I must warn you, there is a bunch of violence, and a bloody scene, so if you are squeamish around blood, I recommend that you look the other way…**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**I do not own Powerless or Linkin Park, but this song is quite fitting...**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, and a OC that is due to make an appearance in this chapter…**

**Special thanks out to LydeaBlaze for helping me out with the Battle of the Ice Claws**

* * *

Chapter Fifteen: A Promise Broken

_"And you held it all but you were careless to let it fall, You held it all and I was by your side...powerless"_

- A verse from Powerless by Linkin Park

_One year later... (__**Four years earlier from present**__)_

However, for some reasons, Nyra never did conceive a egg, no matter how much they had tried. They even consulted a doctor they had in the Pillar (well Surtr did, Nyra was busy overseeing training), but Surtr merely said everything was fine, although he said it quite peculiarly…but Nyra didn't look any further into it.

The year had also been very busy, as being a ruler has it's toll on the two owls, as they had to oversee how each soldier train, how they cooperate with each other, and basically how they fare in battle. Just recently, they had a batch of new recruits (**Note: They been getting recruits each year**), and Surtr, being a fairer owl, manage to gather up a lot more owls than the last four years, although it wasn't much. Since the incident in Beaks, less and less owls came in each year, and the Pure Ones couldn't really afford to be picky, thus leading to two of their new recruits, Jatt and Jutt, cousins from the southern kingdom, and in Maurice's opinion, as he was the recruits' trainer, damn hillbillies.

As for Surtr, he had been dealing with a lot of stress lately, as he tried to do what he said he would do a year ago, end the war their ancestors started. It didn't help that owls from all over kept trying to take their territory, especially from the northern kingdoms (they held a lot more hatred towards the Pure Ones than the Guardians, who were noble enough to not attack unless provoked). However, tonight would be the night that seals the fate of our certain king forever…

It all started one night, as Nyra was helping Maurice train the cousins, as despite what the Sulawesi Masked Owl said, the queen saw a bit of potential in the two Long-Eared Owls.

"Come on, Jutt, would you stop being a coward and actually punch your own damn blood?!" Maurice screeched, annoyed with the two owls, who were bracing each others.

"I can't do that! I might crack his beak!" Jutt complained, as he pushed against his cousin.

"You might? I am more capable of hurting you than you are!" Jatt spat back, insulted by his cousin's remark.

"Are not!" Jutt rebutted.

"Are too!" Jatt bounced back.

This resulted in a 'are not, are too' argument as they now started to wrestle and Maurice gripped the bridge of his beak, and said, "Damn my life…"

"Come on, Maurice, you got to give them points for trying." Nyra said a bit weirded out by the duo's idiocy as they rolled around.

"Are you kidding? Out of all the recruits we have, you had to take a damn liking to these two?" The male general said, peeved.

"First off, I merely see a future for these two, I didn't said they were elite material, and secondly, you been very harsh with all the recruits lately. Why is that?" Nyra asked.

"Well, if you must know…" Maurice was about to say, when Jatt and Jutt immediately stop wrestling and quickly did a salute, prompting him to see his surrogate father fly in.

"Your majesty, reporting for duty, sir!" The cousins both said, as the Sooty Owl approached the group.

Surtr merely chuckled as he said, "At ease, and that reporting for duty line is _if_ you are coming back from patrol, and such. I am just checking to see how my queen and my trusted general is doing."

"Could be better, Surtr," Maurice grimaced.

"Fine, thank you, work is apace." The white Barn Owl nodded.

"Good, good…hopefully, we can go another month without dealing with a glaux-damn invasion, those Northern owls are getting more and more cocky by the nights." Surtr said, with a bit of bitterness in his voice, but as he said it, a Pure One quickly came in.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! We have a situation!" The soldier screamed.

Astonished by the owl's urgency, the three (followed by Jatt and Jutt) went to the main hall, where a group was gathered around a few owls, who were wounded…

"Step aside, let the king through!" Surtr ordered, as he made his way to the group, and saw how they were scratched-up, beaten, and basically, worse for wear, "Who in hagsmire did this to you?!" He demanded from the leader owl.

"Those damn Northerners…they ambushed us…they killed three of our men…swarmed us and beat the crud out of us…and we were merely patrolling the borders…." The owl panted.

Nyra gasped at the North's audacity of doing such things, while Surtr's expression turned to that of pure anger (something Nyra had never seen before) as he said in a shaky voice, "That…tears it. I've been dealing with them for far too long!" "Soldiers, get your claws ready!" He ordered, as he walked towards his hollow (**Surtr and Nyra still sleep in their hollow**).

"Claws? Exactly what are we doing?" Nyra asked, a little unsure of her mate's thinking, as she followed him.

"Simple, if those owls aren't going to leave us alone and insist on killing our owls, well those damn owls are getting another thing coming to them. The only way they are going to stop is if someone else is running the show…" Surtr muttered in an angered tone.

"What…dear, think about what you are doing! We are talking about a takeover of a kingdom! I know you are angry…" Nyra reasoned, before Surtr turned around and look her square in the eyes with fury.

"I am more than angry…it is one thing to harm a fellow owl…but another thing to kill them out of sheer spite! Look, you said that the wife always stands behind her husband's decision, no matter what, well this is my decision, and I need you to support it." Surtr snarled.

Nyra wanted to object, but she knew she couldn't. Her mother had sometimes questioned her father's morality, and it prompted a few arguments, but her mother assured her that even though they may have different views on an idea that she will always be there for him, right or wrong…

"Okay…for our fallen comrades, we shall put an end to their opposition." Nyra said with determination. Surtr gave a nod, while Maurice, who was listening in on the conversation, merely frowned as he had a bad feeling in his gizzard…

A few hours later, nearly seventy percent of the entire Pure Ones army was in flight, with Surtr and Nyra in front, and Maurice behind them, as a storm started to brew. As they approached the northern territory, snow started to fall, as Nyra and Maurice looked at each other with uncertainty while Surtr had a look of vengeance, as he was out for blood…

Soon, they were approaching a snowy clearing surrounded by a forest, as the army perched in trees, and Surtr (symbolically perched upon the highest) screamed, "Northerners! Show yourselves!"

The other owls stared at him, as if he was crazy, but then, perched on the other side of the clearing, a snowy owl (**not Samuel nor Boron and Barran**) appeared atop another high tree, with a platinum-colored helm with a sapphire in it, as he screeched, (**his voice is that of Liam Neeson**) "Pure Ones…what is the meaning of this?"

"What is the meaning of this?!" Surtr repeated, "Your damn soldiers killed a few of my owls who weren't breaking _your _rules! We had been suffering enough as it is, yet you keep on attacking our territory, _Solidor_!" He finished with a spat.

The snowy owl merely chuckled, as he said, "Oh, your soldiers broke a rule alright, the rule of _Glaux_…owls like you Pure Ones break his rule everyday, the rule of you _hagsfiends_ existing in our world! Owls like you should be smote off the face of mother Earth."

Nyra was shocked by Solidor's audacity of calling them hagsfiends, as she gave him a fierce glare (although he probably couldn't see it), and Surtr merely laughed in anger, "You North owls and your damn religious beliefs, it is that damn excess of belief in that faith that got the Others wiped from existence. You will not get away with this crime, never again…" as the Pure Ones all went into battle stance.

Maurice then whispered to Nyra, as she had a look of uncertainty, "Have you ever been in a battle before?"

"Well, I have a bit of experience but…" Nyra answered.

"Don't worry, just stick with me or Surtr and you should be fine." Maurice assured.

"Should?" Nyra repeated, as her anxiety from long ago started to return, as she returned her gaze to the to-be battlefield.

"Prepare to bid adieu to your precious throne, Solidor, your army is as good as finished!" Surtr taunted.

Nyra was about to ask 'what army' when all the sudden, a lot of owls (most of them snowy and the remaining a random variety of owl species) step from the forest, all of them armed with claws and helmed with silver helms (lighter than a Pure One), and ready to defend their kingdom to the death. However, she saw something in the sky, and her blood ran cold when that something had a couple glint of gold in it…Guardians…

Surtr saw this and screamed, "Guardians?! You owls are damn cowards! You always hide behind your damn Glaux or someone else…oh, once I am through with you, you will be up playing the damn harp for him! Pure Ones…TO BATTLE!"

(**Play Lost in the Echo by Linkin Park**)

The Pure Ones all let out a battle cry as they took to the sky, as well as the North, as Surtr lead the charge with hate in his eyes as they made contact with the opposing forces in mere seconds. Soon, clashes of metal began to resonate as the Battle of the Ice Claws began…

Nyra, being a novice she was when it came to a full-fledge war, was no rookie when it came to defending herself, as she had four years of practice, and past experiences with defending against rival owls. She swung her claws and wings as she repelled any Guardian or Northerners that charged at her. However, a Northerner grabbed her wings from behind; as he was trying to rip them off, fortunately, Maurice quickly bashed him and sliced his back. Nyra gave a nod to Maurice (and he returned it) as she weaved around attacks and pushes any owls that got in her way…

She looked around for her mate to see if he needed help, but her worries were set to rest, as she saw him cutting down soldier after soldier and Guardian after Guardian, as she happily thought "_That owl was serious when he said he killed over a hundred owls…_" as she bashed another owl.

Surtr, on the other talon, was decimating any owl that was unfortunate enough to get caught in his line of sight, as he slashed, bashed, and break them. Soon, he caught Solidor, fending off some of his men, in his sight and smirked, as he charged at him…but he never contacted him as another owl hit him hard into the ground within the forest. As he recovered, he heard a familiar voice, "Well, well, well, we meet once more, Surtr…"

The Sooty Owl's inner rage boiled, as he recognized the voice anywhere, as he spat, "Lyze…" as he got up and saw a Whiskered Screech Owl with a specially designed bronze helm, giving him a smug and cocky look. Although he never told Nyra, he had a fierce rivalry with the old owl ever since they were both beginners in their respective alliance, as they butted head and clashes claws at almost every battle that included Guardians and Pure Ones.

"Indeed it is I. I figured you would go for the leader as soon as you seen him. You were always predictable." Lyze taunted, as the two began to circle each other.

"Stay out of this, Lyze, this battle doesn't concern you or the damn Guardians; I am merely avenging the ones slain by those who relish in cowardice." Surtr warned.

"If you Pure Ones are threatening the peace of our kingdoms, it does concern us. I understand you are angry, but this was not the best road to take." The old owl scolded.

"Oh, you Guardians never understand us. You owls believe that our way of thinking is wrong, yet you think that your beliefs are universal for all. All you Guardians are nothing but oppressive hypocrites!" The Pure One king screeched as he swung his battle claw at Lyze, who dodged it with ease.

Nyra, who was still avoiding contact if she could, heard her husband's screech and was about to head towards him when Maurice screamed, "Nyra…HELP!" as he was being overpowered by two Guardians. Knowing that she couldn't leave her friend to die (and knowing that her mate could handle himself), she rammed into one of the two Guardians. The other Guardian, seeing this, was about to rip off one of Maurice's wings when Nyra, merely reacting on killer's instincts, swung her battle claw at the owl's throat, as blood sprayed onto her forehead, as the origin of the blood fell towards the ground.

The Barn Owl panted, as she felt the blood trickled on her face, and immediately felt sick to her stomach, when Maurice, relieved that he was safe, went to her and screeched, "Are you all right?!" Nyra answered by throwing up a little, as Maurice quipped, "Yup, you are all right if you don't faint from killing an owl. Come on, we need to help Surtr!"

The queen nodded as she and Maurice both charged towards the forest where Surtr was, as he was deep in conflict as he and Lyze exchanged blows and dodges, still on even ground. Nyra, desperate to keep her mate alive, ignored the sick feelings in her gizzard as she slashed owls that flew into her flight route. However, the Sulawesi Masked Owl was unlucky, as he got held up by another couple of Guardians and Northerners, as he fends them off.

Soon, Nyra landed on a tree overlooking the two rivals and shouted, "Surtr! Are you alright?"

The Sooty Owl, while locking his claw with the Whiskered Screech Owl, said to Nyra without looking, "Stand down, dear, this fight is mine to fight alone!"

Lyze, however, was curious as he took a quick glance at the beautiful white owl, "Who is that charming owl right there?"

"No one that concerns _you_, this is our battle, and I intend to end it!" Surtr snarled.

However, the Screech Owl caught on and put the pieces together, "Wow, she is quite younger than you to be mates to a grouchy old owl such as yourself."

"Shut up! This is between you and me!" The Pure One roared back.

The Screech Owl then pushed him back and quickly said to Nyra, "I feel ever so sorry for you, my dear. To be weighed down by such a burden."

This was a sheer insult to the queen, as she was about to strike at him, when Surtr, also angered by his comment, headbutted him into a tree, as Surtr ordered, "NYRA! GET YOUR TAILFEATHERS BACK INTO THE BATTLEFIELD! I GOT SOME THINGS TO TAKE CARE OF!"

The Barn Owl was about to deny when she was rammed by a snowy owl into another tree. Spitting the blood from her beak, she glared at the one who did it and saw a golden helmed snowy owl. Judging by the owl's stature, it was a female (**Guess who…**) as Nyra said in a vicious voice, "You are going to pay dearly for that!"

"Oh, it is you that going to pay, you wench!" The snowy owl spat back with indifference, as they lunged at each other with ferocity…

Meanwhile, in the battlefield, Maurice, who finished off the owls that impeded him, as he heard the two most important owls in his life fighting, as he noticed another snowy owl, in fact, there were two, one with a golden helm, and another with platinum as he thought, "_Got ya, Solidor…and whoever the hagsmire that one owl is_" as he charged at Solidor.

But his claws met nothing as he effortlessly dodge it, as the other snowy owl (**Guess who again…**) suddenly grabbed him, and merely said, "Thought it would be that easy, did you?"

"_Aw cluster…_" Maurice was about to say in his head, before getting thrown in the ground.

Back with Surtr and Lyze, they were going at each other with fury, as they clawed at each other, while Nyra fended off the snowy owl she was faced with.

"You need to stop this, Surtr! If you continue down this path, you are not only going to hurt yourself, but everyone else that matters to you. Think about your mate!" Lyze reasoned while catching his talons once more.

These words affected him, as he quickly glimpsed back at his queen, as she was bloodied up from earlier, as she was suddenly pinned against the tree by the snowy owl. Then he looked back at him and said, "I am…but I shall not stand by while my men get trampled by condescending fools. Only when everyone else is bowing down to us will I say that my family is safe…" Then he pushed him back as they both jump towards opposite ends of the clearing, "If that means killing every single one of you, that is the sacrifice I am willing to make."

Lyze, sighing from his failure of reasoning, merely said with pity, "I am sorry it had come to this…but you sealed your fate…" as he flexed his claws as both he and the Sooty Owl exchanged a fierce glare…

Nyra's blood ran cold as she heard those words, knowing that this was going to end badly if she didn't stop it, gripped the branch she was on and quickly bashed the owl that had her pinned and rammed her back out into the battlefield. However, the snowy owl wasn't ready to give up as she let out a battle cry and collided her claws with Nyra, as they began to fight once more.

Dead silence was in the air as Lyze and Surtr both took battle stances; as they were both determine to end this rivalry once and for all. Then with a battle cry, they charged at each other, with their right talon raised, ready to meet skin and soon, and soon enough, they finally met…

Maurice, having been knocked out by a male snowy owl (**not Solidor**), as he slowly got to his feet while rubbing his head, and mentally cursed himself for getting knocked out. Then two loud screams emanated throughout the bloodstained snowy meadow, cries of pain that would strike any owl dead into his or her gizzard. The Sulawesi Masked Owl looked towards the woods, and easily recognized one of the screams to be his master... "Surtr…GENERAL!" The young owl screamed as he quickly flew towards the forest…

The white Barn Owl was still fending off the female snowy owl, when she heard the screams, and immediately feared the worst… "No…" she whispered, as she then bashed her head into the snowy owl and quickly flew towards the origin of the sounds…

The golden helmed snowy owl was about to follow when she heard, "Barran! We need your assistance!" and she turned to find a few of her comrades in danger. She looked back at the Barn Owl and merely sighed as she flew to help her fellow Guardians in peril…

A minute later, Nyra was back to the clearing where she left the two owls, and was horrified to find blood spatters in the middle of the clearing, and the bodies of the two owls on the ground.

Not wasting time, she flew down to the ground and approached her mate with fear and caution. Nyra was beyond all reason scared…the king wasn't moving, and by looking at the blood, her fears were becoming more and more real. Fortunately though, she saw his body rose with slow breathing and gave off a long sigh of relief as a few tears drop from her eyes. She stepped forth and asked, "Surtr, are you all right?" as she was about to touch him.

But, all the sudden, the king suddenly flinched as he started to scream in pain, but by the way he was screaming was odd, and it became more odd when he started screaming, "Ont ook at me, Ont ook at me!" as he covered his face with his wings and back away from his mate towards a tree.

Nyra was taken aback as she stepped back, and then she felt something odd, she looked down and was horrified to see…part of an owl's beak. She returned her gaze to the owl, as she blood seeping between his feathers; summoning all her courage, she approach the Sooty Owl, and ignoring the male's attempt to flinch away, she pulled the wings down…and she had to use all her strength to not scream in horror as she gasped at the sight…

Surtr's face, once beaming with courage and bravery, now had a bad slash across his left eye, and where his beak was…nothing but his lower half of his beak remained, as blood was leaking from the part where the top half was and from the scratch, as he was taking long shuddering breaths that hinted at shame and pain, as he then said, as a bit of tears trickled from his good eye, as he continued saying, "Ont ook at me…Ont ook at me…"

"Surtr…" Nyra said, as tears fell, heart aching to see her mate in such pain. However, she heard a bit of heavy breathing from behind her, and turned around to find the once-smug Screech Owl, struggling to crawl away, as he bled from the stump of his left leg, and not far from it, his left talon…

For once in Nyra's life, she was beyond furious, this owl…and Guardians altogether; they had been nothing but trouble for them. She wouldn't been surprised if the Guardians were responsible for her father's death (she was sure they weren't, but still…), but now…they permanently scarred her husband and shamed him…to her, this was unforgivable…With anger, her eyes turned a blood red for the first time, as she let out a screech that sounded far from a normal screech (**This is her trademark screech from the movie, used to call the bats to kill the Guardians and Allomere**), as she was about to approach him.

But then, Maurice comes flying in, panting, as he stared at the clearing, "What in hagsmire happen here, Nyra?" but he got his answer when he saw his surrogate father limped against the tree, and saw his face, and unlike Nyra, he was unable to hold his mortification, "Oh…My…Glaux…" he gasped as he approached him, and saw the part of his beak at his feet and was forced to keep the bile in his throat, and asked, "Who…who did this?"

No answer was made. Maurice look at Nyra for answers, but he noticed the colors of her eyes matched that of the thick fluids that colored the grounds around them, he had once heard of Pure Ones who, when their anger had achieved a level of such greatness, would have eyes that match that of a hagsfiend. Many owls never notice that they get this way, and never believe others that they could be that way. It was once rumored that ones who had these eyes were actually hagsfiends themselves…while others believe that it is just a unique trigger within the owl's mind and gizzard that reddens their irises when they are pushed to their limits, he did not know.

He looked at the one who was unfortunate enough to receive such stares, and was at a loss of words, as he saw the one who plagued his mentor's memories for years, in a weakened state. Without his knowing, his eyes turned red as his body was now shaking with fury. "You…!" He muttered, as he watched the owl try to drag himself away, "I am going to tear you limb from limb, you damn bastard!"

Lyze, for the first time in his time as a Guardian, was horrified. Here he was, in the middle of a forest, alone, with his left talon cut off and now bleeding from where it was, and in the war path of two Pure Ones with red eyes, a tell tale sign that you had officially angered a Pure One. He was too weak to get up, as he felt the male owl approached him like a predator to a prey. He never intended on injuring the king that much (although he thinks it was an improvement, his mind would say), but here the king stood, practically half of his face slashed up, and Lyze himself knew that he was going to die…

Maurice, not willing to let the one who dare touch his master live another moment, charged with a roar (again that didn't match that of a normal owl) as he was going to rip him to pieces, as Lyze shut his eyes and accepted his punishment for what he had done…

However, as if there was an angel watching over the old Screech Owl, the male snowy owl and Solidor flew down like bullets and repelled the charging Sulawesi Masked Owl as they spread their wings to protect their comrade and Solidor gripped Maurice's neck.

Nyra, snapping out of her angered phase, watched in horror as her friend was now at one of her enemies' mercy, and was now unsure of what to do…

Solidor chuckled as he said, "Well, Lyze, I got to commend you, I think our new king here has a better looking face."

"Damn you, you preaching bastard!" Maurice spat as Solidor gripped his throat tighter, and Nyra looked at the Northern king with utter hatred.

However, the male snowy owl with the golden helm scolded, "Lyze…are you alright?"

"I had better nights, Boron, better nights…" The Whiskered Screech Owl said, while trying to smile.

Boron smiled back, as he then returned a stern look to the queen and the injured king, and said, "Your forces are being trumped as we speak, and your king is in no condition to fight any longer…if you value your mate," he gave a look at Surtr, who was a bit dazed from the blood loss and was unable to do anything, "Your friend," he stared at the owl at Solidor's talons, "and the army's lives you will return to whence you came. Do I make myself clear?"

The white Barn Owl wanted to rebut, but she couldn't, her mate needed medical attention, and Maurice was going to be killed if she refused. Knowing that her mate would hate her for this, she then said, "I understand…" with as much pride she could muster.

Boron smiled at the queen's decision, as he gave a nod to Solidor (who was upset of letting a Pure One go free) released his grip on Maurice, as he then back off and gave a death glare at them. However, knowing that they've been beat, Maurice helped his king to his feet as he stumbled a bit, and Nyra went to the other side of him, and put her right wing under his left as she gave one last glare at them before she, Maurice, and Surtr, who was now in a traumatized state, flew off.

As soon as they were flying through the battlefield, Maurice screamed, "Pure Ones, FALL BACK! RETREAT!" Shocked by the words, the Pure Ones, ones who weren't killed, ever loyal to their leaders, followed them, as they left the battle downtrodden and defeated.

Meanwhile, Lyze, perched on a tree, being braced by Boron and Solidor, watched the Pure Ones king being flown off, merely stared down as he clutched part of the beak that belong to him, and said, "I am sorry...I thought I was doing what was right…" as he and the other two flew back to the Northern base, to celebrate their 'victory' over the Pure Ones, as the battle and Lyze himself would go down in history as the one who had defeated the king of the Pure Ones, and this story would go on to inspire a certain young Barn Owl…

A few hours later, the Pure Ones returned to the Pillar of Supremacy, and before any soldier could question why the had lost, the two generals rushed the king to the infirmary. It had been an hour since they did that, as Nyra and Maurice were both waiting outside of the hollow, Nyra merely leaning against the wall, while Maurice was pacing.

"I just don't believe it…we had the Lyze of Keil at his weakest…and I was so stupid that I let my guard down…" Maurice ranted, as he was angry with himself.

"Maurice, it wasn't your fault. If anything, it was that damn owl." Nyra said, as her heart burned with rage remembering him.

"IT IS MY FAULT! IF I HAD ONLY BEEN THERE TO HELP HIM, HE WOULDN'T HAVE HALF OF HIS DAMN FACE RIPPED OFF!" Maurice screamed at Nyra, as he was shuddering with rage, "It is all my damn fault…" as he then fell to his knees and started to sob.

"Maurice…" Nyra said, as she wanted to comfort him, but she was suffering as well. Had she not been distracted by that snowy owl, she would have stayed and help him.

Then, an African Grass Owl walked out of the hollow, as he was the pillar's doctor. Soon, Nyra and Maurice (who managed to calm down a bit) quickly confront him, and Nyra asked, "How is he?"

The grass owl was surprised by the queen's desperateness as he answered (**his voice is that of Kevin McKidd, who plays Owen Hunt in Grey's Anatomy…ironic isn't it?**) "He will be fine, we manage to stop the bleeding, and is expected to make a full recovery…"

"But…" Maurice questioned, as he knew that the doctor had more to say.

The grass owl sighed, "Given the fact that his beak was amputated, Surtr is currently suffering from trauma, and I am afraid, the damage is too great…"

Maurice and Nyra shared upset looks, as Nyra said, "Can we see him? Maybe we can snap him out of it."

"That's just the thing…he doesn't want to see anyone, hagsmire, he wanted me out once I was done." The doctor explained.

This surprised Nyra, as Maurice screeched, "WHAT?! I am his closest friend!" and then he gestured to the white Barn Owl, "She is his mate! And he doesn't want to see either of us?"

The doctor nodded, prompting Maurice to curse under his breath, as Nyra then asked, "Isn't anything we can do?"

The doctor sighed once more, as he said, "All we can do now is wait…but there is one thing…"

"What?" Both Nyra and Maurice asked.

"Well, I had heard once that the Others, when they had lost a part of their body, once made an artificial look-alike of the part, and it works almost as well as the real thing…I think they called it 'prosthetics'." He explained, "Maybe we can do the same for our lord's beak, and maybe it might bring him to his senses…"

"Okay, I have the blacksmith make it his number one priority." Maurice said, as he flew off to have the beak made. The doctor then return back to the hollow to work on other patients, since they did just come back from a war, leaving Nyra all by herself.

"Surtr…please be okay…I can't bear to lose you, too" Nyra said to herself, as tears fell down once more that night.

A month later…

The month since the disastrous battle of the Ice Claws would have to be one of the worst times in her life, even overshadowing the few months she spent since the fire at Beaks. A few hours later from when the doctor suggested 'a prosthetic beak', Maurice came back with a bronze-color beak made of metal, and gave it to the doctor to put it on their king. The good news was that according to the grass owl, Surtr had accepted the beak, and was a little less distraught, the bad news was, he still refused to see anyone.

Thus, over the month, Nyra took leadership over the Pure Ones, while Maurice saw to it that the soldiers were still trained. Over that month, no beak or feather was seen of the king, not even Nyra had seen him, and many of the soldiers begun to speculate that the king was merely being a coward to show his ugly face (this resulted in one of them never being seen again, courtesy of Maurice, thus shutting them up).

Nyra for the first time in her life never felt so alone, despites the company of her friend Maurice. She often spent hours in the night at their special spot, crying, begging that she could feel the embrace of her mate once more. It was a dark time for her…and sorry to say, it was only going to get darker…

One night, Nyra was merely walking, with nothing but her thoughts, as she passed the infirmary, which she did daily, hoping that her mate would come out and hold her…but he never did, and tonight was no different. She sighed, as she was about to continue, but then her mind said, "_Are you seriously going to pass by the infirmary again? For crying out loud, this is your mate we talking about. Are you going to keep dealing with this pain while Surtr hide in shame?_"

"No…" Nyra said to herself as reply to the conscience.

"_He is your mate, you love him no matter what! Are you going to let what he said get in the way of you comforting him?_" The conscience said again.

"No." The white Barn Owl said, with a bit more vigor.

"_Are you going to let this traumatic event RULE HIS LIFE?!_" The conscience practically screamed in her head.

"NO!" Nyra bellowed with determination, as she then turn around, and walked into the infirmary with stride.

As she walked in, the doctor from before noticed that the queen was walking towards where the king was resting, and tried to step in front, "My queen, what are you doing? He doesn't want to see anyone."

"No…the only way that Surtr is ever going to get past this is if someone talks to him. I had stand by for a whole month alone waiting for him, and damn it, I will not go another night, am I clear?" She screeched angrily at the doctor.

"…Yes, ma'am" The doctor nodded, a little frightened, as he then stepped aside.

Nyra gave him a nod, as she then approach the hollow where he was staying. The hollow itself was clean (with a few bones, left over from the rats that was fed to the patient), and at the back of the room, Surtr was just standing there, motionless, and quiet.

The queen was about to take a step forward, when the king said, in a slightly different voice, "I thought I told you I didn't want to see anyone."

"I know…and I had respected those wishes for a month, thirty nights I had spent without you…please, Surtr, you can't spend your whole life hidden in this hollow." Nyra pleaded.

This angered the king a little, as he turned around, revealing his face to Nyra for the first time, shocking her a little. The scratches on Surtr's left eye had healed, but now it was glazed and there were still scars around it, and where his beak was, there was a larger than usual bronze beak that overhang his lower beak. The king then said in a venomous tone, "Look at me, Nyra…that owl had humiliated me…scarred me for life…I can't show my face to my subjects, or to anyone…It hurts even for you to see me like this." He finished with a sad tone as a bit of tear left his good eye.

"Surtr…." Nyra said, as she then approached him, while putting a wing on the scarred side of his face, as she then said, "I love you no matter what, we may had lost the battle against them…but we still have each other, and I am thankful to Glaux for that." Then she put her beak to Surtr's, as she kissed him, sure his kiss now tasted like copper, but it was still her mate; the one she had married a year ago. When their beaks parted, she looked at Surtr, who then gave a sad smile.

Then, they heard some yelling outside, one of them was the doctor saying, "Surtr doesn't want any…"

"I don't give a damn what he wants, I am his trusted general and apprentice, and I will see him, glaux damn it!" The other voice yelled, which sounded a lot like…

Maurice comes into the room with something bundled in cloth under his left wing, as he then saw Nyra and Surtr, and said, "Oh, I didn't realize you two were busy..."

Surtr said, "Damn it, what with owls not respecting their king's wishes?!" with a bit of annoyance.

"Surtr..." Nyra scolded, "Maurice and I are trying to help you, there is no need to be cross..."

"It's alright, Nyra, because I got the very thing that will cheer Surtr up!" Maurice said with glee.

"Really?" Surtr questioned with a raised brow...

"Yes," Maurice nodded, "Let me ask you a question...what is it that a king always have?" he asked.

"His self-respect..." Surtr quipped, as Nyra frowned at her king's sadness.

"No, milord, I am talking about a crown...every king has to have a crown, Zephyr had one, and we really can't use it since the old coot took it with him." Maurice explained, "That is why...I had made..." He unwraps the object and reveal..."this..." as he placed it in front of Surtr

It was a black helmet, like many of the Pure Ones' helms, but it was blacker than usual, and had intricate designs all over it, when Nyra looked at it, she had a bad feeling in her gizzard...

"Really, Maurice? You think that a helmet will cheer him up?" Nyra said, a little annoyed as she then approach him, "I don't think Surtr should be ashamed to show his face to our fellow subjects. He had been the general for fifteen years, he doesn't need some symbol of power to gain respect!"

However, unbeknownst to her, Surtr picked up the helm with his wings, and his eyes had turned from curious to a look of determination and anger, as he then started walking out the hollow.

"Well, excuse me, Nyrae, for trying to get that damn owl out of his slump...hey, where is he going?" Maurice pointed out, as Nyra turned around to find Surtr walking away with a helm under his wing.

"Surtr! What are you doing?" The white Barn Owl asked,

"Have everyone gather in the main hall immediately..." Surtr ordered without turning.

"What? Why?" Nyra asked, a little concerned about her mate.

"Don't question me! Just get everyone to assemble!" Surtr snarled, surprising both of them, as he then walked off, as the two generals shared concerned looks.

Fortunately, in matters of minutes, the whole battalion of Pure Ones were gathered in the main hall, all of them bustling with whispers, as Nyra and Maurice stood in front of them, as they tried to look with pride, but they couldn't shake a feeling that something wasn't right.

Then, a loud ahem echoed through the hall, as everyone turned to the iron perch that overlooked the training grounds (**the one Skarmoris was perched on in chapter eight**), and saw a Sooty Owl with a peculiar mask, and it took a bit before everyone realized that it was their estranged king...

The king gave an intimidating look as he then said, "Now that I have your attention...as you all know, I have been recovering from my wounds from the ill-fated Battle of the Ice Claws. I admit that I have been loathing myself for what had happen that night, but tonight, I had an epiphany...I was weak, I had let my guard down for a mere moment and now I have this scar as a reminder of my mistake..." Surtr finished as he gestured his face, prompting a few confused looks from the army, and a sad look from Nyra.

"But now, all that change...this crown had shown me the light, which is why I am abandoning my birth name..." Surtr explained, thus shocking Nyra and Maurice, as the Sulawesi Masked Owl merely mouthed 'What?!', "So from here on forward, I shall be referred by a name that is to be feared by all...**_Metalbeak_**..." Surtr ordered, "and anyone who will dare to mention my old name shall be punished severly." He added with a warning. Everyone was now looking at him a bit scared, as the Sooty Owl they knew was never one to issue death threats, and the mask that he was wearing was giving off a very bad feeling within their gizzards, and the two generals were having trouble processing what he was saying.

"He...He can't be serious..." Nyra said in disbelief.

Then Surtr continued, "For years, we have been forced to roll over for every one else...but no more, as tonight marks the true beginning of history, our history...we will wreak our vengeance upon all that had defied us...and we will finally destroy the Guardians, and as our forefathers had hoped to achieve, we shall rule over all!" Surtr bellowed as he spread his wings to emphasize the 'all' part, as he then said, "Who's with me?!"

Unwilling to disappoint their king (especially with that sinister helmet), the owls began chanting his new name, "Metalbeak! Metalbeak! Metalbeak! Metalbeak!"

On the perch, the helmed lord gave a evil smirk, and then said, "Now get back to work, and standby for briefing..." as he then flew down, and was walking towards the tunnel leading up to the upper chamber when Nyra asked, "Surtr...are you feeling alright? That was kind of a harsh speech."

The king laughed with a bit of insanity, "I am more than alright, Nyra, I feel alive...but it would do you better if you don't mention that name, my name is now Metalbeak, and don't think because you are my mate that it excludes you as well..." as he then walked off.

Maurice's beak was agaped at the king's subtle threat, as he never heard him talk in such a way to her, and Nyra was at a loss of words as well, the happiness she felt when she saw Surtr again was quickly snuffed out and was replaced with dread...Tonight, a monster was created...

_One year later... (__**Three years earlier from present**__)_

Nyra was wrong when she thought that the month without her mate was the worst time of her life, it was the whole year that followed it. Ever since Surtr had came of out of hiding and wore that helm, he became a new owl, and to say the least, an owl that Nyra nor Maurice liked. Surtr was extremely insistent on being called Metalbeak and would literally break an owl's wing if they even say the first sound of his name. His personality also became bad, as he actually took enjoyment in the pain of others and was aggressive, and he often spent hours on end alone in the king's chamber without being bothered by anyone (they wouldn't dare disturb him).

To make matters worse, his way of ruling had changed. Ever since the fire in Beaks and the years that followed, owls stop coming in to enlist, thought prompting Metalbeak to take matters into his own talons...he order his men to find owlets that were of Tyto blood and take them to the Pillar to be trained under them, whether they liked it or not. Both Maurice and Nyra were appalled by such actions, their loyalty was to the Pure Ones, no doubt, but stealing owlets? That was a fine line that shouldn't have been crossed. Then came Grimble, an old Boreal Owl who was forced into joining them when a few of their soldiers had attacked his nest and threatened his family's lives. Fortunately, Metalbeak still had a bit of mercy in his heart and was willing to leave his family be if he swore allegiance to them, which Grimble hestiantly accepted...thus bringing us to one night...

Nyra was busy in the library looking to find a book on war tactics as she moved alongside the bookcases, "Let see, no, no, no, definitely not, no...ah, here we go," she said as she pulled out a book, "_The Owls of Wars_, a book on the greatest war tactics."

"Found what you were looking for?" a gruff voice asked, prompting Nyra to turn around to see the Boreal Owl with a grumpy look.

Nyra gave him a glare, when she had first met the owl, he had rubbed her the wrong way, as he held little to no respect for the Pure Ones, despite the fact that he sworn allegiance to them, and judging by the look of his face, the feeling was mutual, "For your information, yes, Metalbeak requested that we brush up on battle tactics for when we fly into battle once more, and it would do you good to lose the attitude, Grimble, you may be a excellent asset to us, but do not think that you are not expendable." She sneered as she was about to walk off.

"Why?" Grimble asked, causing Nyra to freeze in place, "Why do you just stand by while you watch your tyrant of a mate rule this kingdom with a iron talon?"

"My mate is interested in the sake of our livelihood, he is trying to make life better for us. Something you wouldn't understand." Nyra rebutted with a glare.

"Oh, really?...The only reason I am helping you selfish bastards is for my family. Yet, you are standing behind a monster, a cold-blooded monster!" Grimble spat, "Are you honestly blind to what he had become? When was the last time he had shown you, his mate, any act of love towards you."

The queen was about to rebut, but she knew that he was right, even on the anniversary of thier marriage, Surtr had never once showed any affection towards her, and she wouldn't dare show any to him, for the fear of how he would react. "Just get back to work, Grimble, and thanks Glaux that I don't kill you!" Nyra said with anger as she stormed off.

Grimble watched as she exited the library, and then sighed as he looked with pity, "I am sorry, Nyra, but you need to open your eyes..."

As soon as Nyra left the library, she merely sighed, she couldn't deny that Grimble was right about her mate, he had changed a lot over the year, and not of them for the better. Grimble's words echoed in her head, "_You are standing behind a monster, a cold-blooded monster...are you honestly blind to what he had become?_"

As much as she want to think further into it, a young soldier fell in front of her, surprising and snapping her out of her thoughts. The soldier quickly picked himself up and said in a quick and nervous voice, "My apologies, ma'am, I am still trying to get the hang of flying down, please don't punish me!" as he winced.

Nyra looked at him oddly and sighed, ever since they starting taking owlets, the age of recruitment had reduced significantly to fifteen, an age when most owlets had started branching, but since the Pure Ones were strict when it came to training, they had to skip ahead to learning how to fly, thus resulting in a few casualities.

"Calm down, young one, is there something you wanted to tell me?" Nyra asked in a soothing tone.

"Oh, yes, ma'am, Lord High Tyto Metalbeak would like a word with you!" The soldier said again in a quick voice.

Nyra was quite surprised by the request, and with a nod, she dismissed the young soldier as he flew off, and went to talk with her mate...

It was mere moments before Nyra was before the doors to the king's chamber. With a deep breath, she gave a nod to the two Pure Ones that were near the door as they opened the doors for her as she walks in.

The chamber was still the same as it was for all the years they had been here, and standing at the end, watching the sea, was her mate Surtr as he just stood there, either sleeping (she doubted it) or pondering something. It wasn't till the door closes when Metalbeak acknowledge her presence (without turning to face her), "Well, general, how is training progressing?"

Nyra had to summon all her mental strength to not lose her temper, how could her own mate just refer to her as no more than a soldier in his army? "Everything is going smoothly, the young ones are taking to flight very well, the older ones are becoming more and more skilled in combat."

"Good...good." Metalbeak nodded.

The white Barn Owl looked at him odd before asking, "Uh, Metalbeak? Didn't you want to see me about something?"

"Oh, yes," Metalbeak remembered, "I had been talking with our informant again."

The queen gave a concerned look, this 'informant' was an owl that Metalbeak had suddenly met a few months back, and to make matters worse, it turns out that he was a Guardian that went by the name 'Allomere'. From what Metalbeak told her, he was interested in ruling part of the owl kingdoms once they had conquered them all, and in exchange, he told Metalbeak of something. That is as much as Nyra knew, all she knows is that it was all part of, as Metalbeak quoted, 'a grand plan that would annihilate the Guardians for good.'

"He said that in order for our plan to put into effect, we would need to uproot our base of operations..." Metalbeak stated.

This shocked Nyra, "Uproot? You mean...we have to move? All of us have to leave these sacred halls?" Nyra asked, not believing what she was hearing.

The king nodded, "Yes, and to tell you the truth, these halls aren't worth that much to me, beside, we have to do so if we are going to have cooperation with the bats..."

"Bats?! Where in hagsmire are we going that is so damn important that we need to leave what had been our forefather's home and cooperate with those wretched excuses for flyers?" Nyra asked, a bit shocked and angry

The Sooty Owl, undetered by his mate's anger, merely declared, "St. Aegolius, the crags a little west from here, I heard that those damn owls Skench and Spoorn had finally bit the dust, and the place is now free for the taking."

"What about the hawks?" Nyra asked, still donning a glare, "I doubt their leader would like to be neighbors to us Pure Ones."

"That hawk can burn in hagsmire for all I care, now, general, I need you to assemble our men and prepare to pack all that we can carry for tomorrow. You are dismissed." Surtr said with indifference.

Nyra, still upset, was about to leave, but something kept her from moving, and this aroused a question from the king, "Didn't you hear me? I said assemble the..."

"No..." Nyra interrupted in a shaky tone.

This prompted Metalbeak to turn around, in disbelief, as he said, "Excuse me?"

"You heard me," Nyra snarled, letting the anger she had built up over the year out as she turned around, "No..."

Metalbeak then hopped off his perch and then asked her in a peeved tone, "What is the meaning of this, general?"

"NO! IT IS NYRA! I AM YOUR WIFE, GLAUX DAMN IT! I HAVE BEEN YOUR WIFE FOR TWO YEARS, YET YOU ARE TREATING ME LIKE I AM JUST ONE OF YOUR DAMN SOLDIERS!" Nyra screamed.

Metalbeak was taken aback by her anger, but there was more to her anger, "For too long I had stand by all your decisions, not once have I ever object to your ideas, no matter how immoral and idiotic they may be, but now, you are asking us to leave what had been our home for centuries, just to pursue some feather-brained scheme that some damn Guardian came up with?!"

"Feather-brained?" Metalbeak said, his anger slowly building up.

"You heard me!" Nyra fumed, "The Surtr I know wouldn't trust some power-hungry Guardian and leave what had been his home for twenty-seven years!"

"Metalbeak..." The Sooty Owl tried to correct while maintaining his temper.

But Nyra didn't stop, "The Surtr I know wouldn't have us stealing children just to make an army and have us working with those filthy bats!"

"Metalbeak..." Metalbeak warned in a shaky tone.

Nyra yelled, "The Surtr I knew wouldn't have forgotten about his promise that he made to his wife and to his future children, and not become the DAMN SELFISH AND CRUEL BEAST THAT STANDS IN FRONT OF ME!"

"IT IS METALBEAK, GLAUX DAMN IT!" Metalbeak screeched in her face as he then hit her hard in the face with his right wing, knocking her to the ground, "SURTR WAS WEAK! HE DIDN'T HAVE THE GIZZARD TO DO WHAT I AM DOING! I DON'T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK!"

Nyra was in complete shock, he _actually_ hit her...and he hit her hard, her heart was practically shattering from the pain that the one that was once her loving mate had became...her mind was too distraught to figure out what.

Unbeknownst to her, Metalbeak's angry eyes sudden turned to that of guilt-ridden, but unfortunately faded back when he turned around and said in a deep bitter voice, "Now get out of my sight, and if you dare question my methods again...let's say that the bruise will be the least of what's hurting."

The white Barn Owl merely picked herself up and said in what seems to be a struggling calm voice, "Yes, Lord Metalbeak, I apologize..." before walking out of the king's chamber.

As soon as she left, Metalbeak then turned to the sea once more, and a tear fell from his good eye, as he whispered, "I'm sorry..."

Nyra left the chamber, as she tried to keep a straight face, especially in front of the crowd that was gathering when they heard screaming from within the chamber, as Nyra ordered in a unnatural calm voice, "Our king request that we gather all of our belongings, for as of tomorrow, we are leaving Le Pilier de la Suprématie to a new headquarter, so gather everything you can carry into the main hall." She said, fulfilling what the king had ordered, and leaving for her hollow before they could question her about where they were going.

As soon as she entered the hallway lined with the hollows, tears drop began to fall without her noticing it, and soon, her heart and her gizzard began hurting, and she could barely move, as she fell to her knees and started to sob uncontrollably. Everything...everything was just so wrong, she lost her father, her mother, her home, and to make all of it worse, she had lost the most important owl that meant everything to her...

It wasn't till she felt a wing on her shoulder when she looked up to find the concerned look of her friend, Maurice, the one who regardless of what had happened, stood by her side the whole time ever since she first joined the Pure Ones.

"Nyra? Are you okay? I heard from the others that there were screaming in the throne room, and I went to see if you are alright." Maurice explained.

The queen was slightly relieved that she still had someone there to comfort her, weakly smiled as she wiped tears from her eyes, "Oh, no, I am fine, it was merely an argument, nothing more."

"From what I heard, it sounded like a screaming match." Maurice quipped when he noticed the raw part of her face, as it started to swell, "My glaux...where did you get this? Did Surtr do this to you?" Nyra didn't reply, thus answering him, and angering him, "...I'm going to kill him." as he turn around to head to the king's chamber.

"NO! Please don't, he didn't mean it, he just lost his temper..." Nyra stammered, as she grabbed ahold of Maurice.

"Lost his temper?" Maurice repeated, "Surtr had no right to hurt you! Once I through with him, he will be hurting more than you are right now!" He threatened as he continued to head to the chamber.

"Please! I don't want him to kill you! I already lost everyone else that meant everything to me, I can't bear to lose you, too!" Nyra begged as more tears fell from her eyes as her grip on the male owl.

"How hard did he hit you? Don't you see that the owl you once knew is gone? He's a monster!" Maurice tried to reason.

"You don't think I see that?! I...I just don't know what to do." Nyra said, as she sobbed into the Sulawesi Masked Owl's feathers.

It pained Maurice to see the most beautiful owl he ever met in pain, and it deeply angered him that the one he once called father had done this to her, then he remembered what he planned on doing with Nyra before he was coronated...

"We can run away..." Maurice stated.

"What?" Nyra asked, not sure if she was hearing him right.

"You heard me, we can leave this, you and me! Surtr may be a lost cause, but you and I can run away together, start a new life, and I promise that you will never be hurt again." Maurice said, meaning every single word of it.

Nyra didn't know what to say, she trusted Maurice as much as she trusted Surtr (or at least, used to), and her heart would give anything to be as far away from the one she used to call her husband...but then she remember what her mother said, 'even though they may have different views on an idea that she will always be there for him, right or wrong…', and believe it or not, it was her turn to follow it.

"I can't..." Nyra said with absolute.

"What? Why not?!" Maurice asked, dumbfounded by what she just said.

"My mother always stood by my father, even though he did some things that she frowned upon, no matter what. She was loyal to her mate and I will be loyal to my mate, for better and worse." The white Barn Owl explained, calming down.

"Nyra, please, reconsider..." The Sulawesi Owl begged.

"My mind is made up, I know that under all that hate that Surtr is still in there. I'm sorry..." Nyra apologized, as she turned away to head to her hollow, before Maurice put his wing on her shoulder.

"No need to be sorry, beside, there is no way I will leave you here alone, but if he dare hurt you again...I will take drastic measures." Maurice warned.

The queen sighed, but then said, "Thank you, Maurice..."

The Sulawesi Owl gave her a smile, and said, "Let's get this bruise treated..." as they both head off to the infirmary.

The next night when Nyra woke up, she had a feeling in her gizzard that something wasn't right. She couldn't put her tongue on it, but she felt that something bad had happened. Then she remembered what had happened last night and merely groaned, tonight was the night the entire army was moving their base over to St. Aegolius and she had no idea how Surtr is feeling, given what had happened last night.

As her duty as queen, she reported to the main hall to see that everyone were gathered in the main hall, including Grimble, Jatt, Jutt...but she didn't see Maurice. Now that she was looking, she noticed that Metalbeak wasn't here as well. "_Where the hagsmire are those two?_" She thought.

Then she suddenly remembered what Maurice said, "_If he dare hurt you again...I will take drastic measures._"

"_No, Maurice wouldn't...would he?_" She thought, but fortunately those thoughts were laid to rest when she found Metalbeak flying into the main chamver, but she noticed that his feathers were ruffled up and he had a few scratches on him, and she realize that if Surtr was still alive and kicking, then where is he?

Feeling that Metalbeak was the one to ask, she gathered up all her courage and approached her mate cautiously (she never thought she would act this way around him) and ask, "Uh...Metalbeak? Are you alright?"

"Oh, I am fine, I just had a bit of trouble waking up and I fumbled with my battle claws, nothing that can't be patched up." Metalbeak nonchalantly answered, and Nyra was relieved that he wasn't still angry...yet she was a bit perturbed.

"Where's Maurice? We will be leaving soon, I would hate to see him get left behind." Nyra said with concern in her voice.

"That's just the thing, Nyra...Maurice is no longer part of the Pure Ones..." Metalbeak confessed, sadly.

If her heart wasn't broken from yesterday, it would be broken now, "What?...No...No...Maurice can't be gone! Why would he leave?" She asked in hysterics.

"I'm afraid that I don't know, he just came to me, said that he had some personal business of his own to attend to and can no longer serve under the Pure Ones...I am sorry, I know how much you cared about him." Metalbeak said apologetically.

Nyra was still in denial, it was like a nightmare she could not wake up from, it is as if Glaux himself was trying to isolate her from everyone she loved. All that remained in her life was what was suppose to be her mate Surtr, who now went by the name Metalbeak (a name she had grown to detest), and she wasn't liking her circumstances. However...she remembered the motto of the Pure Ones, 'The strong will triumph over the weak and the broken shall be put out of their misery.' Now wasn't the time to break, she needed to be strong, not only for Maurice, but for her mother, her father, and Surtr...

So, all Nyra said was, "I am sorry, too, to have lost a valuable member of our family."

Metalbeak gave her, was she was surprised to see, a smirk as he then turn to the army, "Pure Ones, onwards to St. Aegolius and onwards to a brighter future, to the sky!"

Everyone (with the exception of Grimble and Nyra) cheered, as all of them spread their wings and flew, while grabbing objects to carry to their hideout, Nyra was about to grab one when Metalbeak said, "There is no need for the queen to strain herself, that is why we have soldiers..."

Nyra was genuinely surprised by his change of behavior, and the fact that he was now referring to her as 'queen'. But she knew there would be more time later to think of that. As they left the Pillar, she looked back as she remembered all the good times she had and knew that she was leaving everything that was meaningful to her behind, as she then glanced at Metalbeak, who was now focused on flying onwards, as she then shook herself out of her reverie, now was not the time to dwell in the past...it was time to look towards the future, as they all flew into the horizons...

It was a few hours before Nyra caught glimpse of St. Aegolius, as she remembered that it was close to what was once her home, Beaks, as she passed over the forest, she felt a shudder in her heart. When they first landed in the main chamber (**this is where Soren and Kludd first met Nyra**), she was quite amazed with how roomy the place was in comparison to the Pillar, as instead of a lot of owls being cramped into a seemingly-thin pillar, there was room for their army to spread out. Metalbeak, who landed before her, went on to explain all the details he had learned about this place. Other than it was once home to another group of evil owls led by two owls known as Skench and Spoorn and that it was the nesting ground for vampire bats (much to the owls' dismay but oddly to Metalbeak's delight), it was seemingly much better than the pillar, Nyra had to admit.

Soon, everyone was gathered in what used to be the throne room for the leaders (**Metalbeak's throne room in the movie**), as Metalbeak was standing in front of him as he said, "Pure Ones, I am sure all of you are wondering why we had left our home back at the Pillar of Supremacy," this prompted a few whispers from the soldiers, "Well, I guess it shouldn't hurt to tell you now...a few months ago, I happen to had made acquaintances with this owl seeking control over part of the owl kingdoms, namely...Ga'Hoole." This shocked everyone, especially Grimble, as he had a sinking feeling of who this owl was, "Yes, as you probably guess, this owl is none other than a Guardian, but rest assured, he seeks power over the territory of Ga'Hoole and had came to me with a plan that will put a end to those wretch Guardians for good."

This raised a few eyebrows from the soldiers, when Surtr said, "Jatt, Jutt, would you please step forward?"

The two Long-Eared Owls looked at each other and then stepped forward nervously, as Metalbeak smirked, "Good, now I will show you the very thing that will help us do it..." as he then picked up a cloth bag and chucked it to between the two big owls, and it contents spilled to reveal a bunch of blue bits, but that what wasn't what shocked them, what shocked them was the fact that as soon as it fell out of the bag, a small blue mist emanated from it and soon Jatt and Jutt were now roiling in pain as they were unable to move and were stuck to the ground. Nyra was about to step in to help them, when Metalbeak stopped her and then he let out a screech as a few bats suddenly swooped in and shoveled the bits back into the bag. As soon as they did, the mist disappeared and the cousins got up, a bit exhausted and udderly confused by what just happened, as well as everyone else and Nyra.

Fortunately, Metalbeak elaborated, "What you had just seen was the power of what I like to call...the flecks. The Guardian I mentioned had found out about the wondrous power of this metal a few months back. These flecks seems to have properties that causes a magnetic inference with an owl's gizzard, thus rendering them immobile. However though, a lot more is required if this plan is to work, and it so happens that the flecks are often eated by the vermins that roamed these parts, thus is the reason we have to move here." This prompted a few ahhs, "And since an owl would be unable to properly handle these flecks unless muffled by let's say a cloth bag, which won't be enough if we are to gather a lot more, which is why we need the bats." He explained.

The owls looked up at the ceiling to find bats hanging off the ceiling and were intimidated, when Metalbeak said, "Do not worry though, these bats are trained to listen to an owl's screech. They will only kill when your trulys, and soon, my mate, tell them to." This surpised Nyra, "But these bats' main purpose is to handle the flecks that are found and place them in a basin."

This however confused everyone more than ever, as Metalbeak said, "It is all part of a three phase plan...Phase One, Relocation, relocate our base to the grounds where the flecks are found, which as you may see, is now complete. Phase Two, Scavenging, the very long and grueling process of gathering these flecks; unfortunately, since the flecks are usually found with those vermins and such, we would have to eat them and yarp them up in pellets and pick through them to find one." This prompted a bunch of disgusted faces and a couple 'ewws'.

"But fear not, I am not going to have the pride of the Pure Ones' go through the waste left by other owls, which is why till Phase Three is ready to be engaged, you are to find as many owlets as you can find, Tyto or not, and if it is a non-Tyto or a Tyto that doesn't share our beliefs, they shall be branded as Pickers, owls that are to pick through the pellets that are yarped up by the others within the area that was once called a 'pelitorium'." Metalbeak explained.

"And if they don't?" A random soldier asked, a little doubtful of his plan.

The king chuckled, "Oh, my simpleton subject, that will not be a burden at all, as I was reading through the lores lately, and had learned of a special technique that bends a owl's will...a process known as 'moonblinking'..."

Everyone then gasped, including Nyra, as she remembered the horrific myths surrounding the topic, it was said that the reason that the owls only sleep in the daytime was that if an owl were to sleep for a certain period of time under the rays of the moon, they, as the text said, would lose all touch with what is real and what isn't and they would be unable to think nor talk at all, what the Others used to call 'zombies'. It was also said that they would follow orders from anyone who tell them what to do...but no one would dare do such a thing to another owl...except for Metalbeak now...

"Sir? You want us to turn actual owls into empty-minded slaves? That is crossing a line a bit, don't you think?" The same random soldier enquired, "You know the Guardians aren't going to stand for this!"

"Well, what those Guardians don't know won't hurt them...besides, this is the part of what our ancestors wanted, to triumph over the weak and put the broken out of their misery..." Metalbeak stated, "This is all for the sake of the final phase..."

"Which is?" Grimble asked, breaking the long bout of silence since they first arrived.

"Phase Three...Eternal Oblivion," Metalbeak said in the darkest voice "As soon as enough flecks has been gathered, we will have our Guardian friend bring all of the Guardians, all of them, mind you, and we shall unleash the power of the flecks upon them and when they are all rendered helpless...let's just say that our bats in the belfry will be feasting that night...and soon nothing shall stand in our way and the Pure Ones shall rule over ALL!" Metalbeak finished with a powerful bellow, thus prompting cheers from everyone (except Grimble, who was quite disturbed by this plan) and Nyra gave a unsure look.

"Now...first things first...Grimble, Jatt, and Jutt, you three shall be the foremen for the Pickers once we recieve our first batch," This prompted a salute from Jatt and Jutt, now fully recovered from the 'demonstration', and a mere nod from Grimble, "As for everyone else, I want guards positioned throughtout the entirety of this place, and starting tomorrow, we shall begin Phase Two...you are all dismissed." He finished, as he went up to the iron perch posted in the room (courtesy, again, of the blacksmith) and just stood there,

Soon, everyone started to clear out of the throne room, till it was only Metalbeak and Nyra, and the queen herself was about to leave when she heard her mate's voice, "Except you, Nyra..."

Nyra looked back at Metalbeak, and asked, "Do you need something, milord?"

"Oh no, all I ask is that you come up here with me..." Metalbeak said with what Nyra seem to recognize as sincerity. This was all unsettling to her, first he was actually a lot less sinister than he been all year, he actually address her by her name...what was going on? However, not willing to disobey again, she comply and flew up to the perch and was greeted with an excellent view of the entire territory. Sure, it wasn't as beautiful as the view from their special spot, but still...it was breathtaking...

Then she felt a wing around her and quickly look at Metalbeak, who was smiling, "Just look at it, Nyra..." he asked, as Nyra then returned her eyes to the view, "This is just the beginning of what will be ours, once we defeat the Guardians, no one will dare to stand in our way, and we shall rule all of the owl kingdoms...together as king and queen..." He declared, as he gave her a promising smile.

That is when Nyra's hope had been reignited, even though her mate has changed, Surtr still lived in him, and right now, she felt a bit of the love that she had always felt when around Surtr and Maurice...sure, she may had lost everyone else, but all she needed now was her mate and if defeating the Guardians that had caused all this would make him happy, she is willing to follow him to the bitter end...

_Two years later... (__**The year before**__)_

A sickening sound was made within the throne room, when Soren, a Barn Owl who was a firm believer in the Guardians, had sent a burning branch through Surtr's heart, and Nyra watched with horror, as her mate fell to the ground and his helm, his symbol of power and respect fell off with a loud thud that seemed to echo throughout all of the Pure Ones' territory...

"NO!" Nyra screeched, not realizing that she loosened the grip she had on Lyze, the very owl that had scarred her mate, and was soon thrown off by him. Soon as he did, as much as she want to kill the young Barn Owl, she knew once again that she and the Pure Ones were beaten once again, and with one last glance at her now-dead mate, she called for a retreat. The Guardians had once again triumphed over the Pure Ones...

An hour later, the remainder of the Pure Ones army landed in a cave not far from St. Aegolius, yet hidden enough so the Guardians wouldn't get any ideas to finish them off. Nyra, however, was still distraught with what had happened, so distraught that she failed to notice Jatt calling her name. "Uh, ma'am, what do we do now?:

This prompted everyone else (including Jutt) to then start badgering her with questions as to what their next plan of action was...Nyra was unsure of what to do, the army was now a ship without it's captain to guide it, and she was the only one with authority left. Her emotions were starting to get the best of her, and deeply angered by the bantering, Nyra then let out a loud "SILENCE!" thus shutting everyone up, and without facing the crowd, she said, "Get some rest, we will figure out what to do next tomorrow..." as she then flew off further into the cave...

Soon, Nyra was all by herself in a makeshift hollow, and as soon as she entered the hollow, her angered expression soon crumble into that of sorrow as she broke down and fell to the ground crying harder than she ever did before, as she whispered, "Where did it all go wrong?..."

Ever since that first night they spent at St. Aegolius, phase two of the ultimate plan to annihilate the Guardians was put in motion, as Pure Ones started snatching owlets from all over the kingdoms, and those that were deemed worthy (and was a Tyto) would be given passage into the Pure Ones, while the others (the unworthy and non-Tytos) were designated as pickers and were moon-blinked. Nyra found it quite disturbing that the horror stories about moonblinking was real, and even more disturbing of it's effect on the owlets, as they now had glazed eyes and were now moving in a orderly fashion. However, she had learned to get used to it.

Over the next two years, she had learned how to control the bats with her screech and have them followed her every whim. She have been training all the new recruits (which had been coming in by the day thanks to the soldiers), especially with this new training method that included a blue bird that she had found and captured and having them chase it. As time progressed, she began to become more cold-hearted and soon, she found herself becoming as malicious as Metalbeak was...but this did not bother her, as all she cared about now was satisfying her mate, Metalbeak, and all other memories began to fade away...

But that all changed when she laid her eyes on certain two Barn Owls that were shown to have potential...however, that one Elf Owl had to go and complain, and one of them had to stand up for her, thus prompting her to dub them Pickers. However, the other Barn Owl, the one she learned to call as Kludd, proved himself to be a valuable member, who raw potential matched that of Maurice...that she had long forgotten about, and reminded her so much of Surtr...a name she had also forgotten. She wasn't phased when she found Grimble trying to help the Barn Owl (who Kludd told her was Soren) and the Elf Owl, and that they managed to escape and she had to kill the Boreal Owl, as she knew that it would all fall into place...

However...that fateful night, it all went to hagsmire, when the same Barn Owl and his friends began to interfere with the bats that were to kill the Guardians off (and as requested by Metalbeak, she had Allomere, the Guardian that been helping them, killed by the bats), and she and Metalbeak were both stupified when Soren manage to destroy all the flecks that they had gathered over the two years, thus releasing the Guardians and they had to resort to plan B, defeating them the old-fashioned way and she along with everyone else flew into battle with them...When the accursed Lyze of Keil attacked her mate again and mocked his scars, she wasn't willing to let history repeat itself as she no longer stood on the sidelines and help him defeat the Screech Owl. Sure, she felt bad for double-teaming, but she was mainly focused on delivering sweet vengeance upon the one that caused her and Metalbeak so much pain...Then _he _came...

Soren came in, had the audacity to attack her mate. She thought that her mate could take him, as she pinned down Lyze and watch with glee (something she thought she would never do in such circumstances) as Metalbeak was about to take care of a nuisance...little did she knew that nuisance would actually _kill_ him...

The widow queen continued to sob, as all the memories she had repressed with all her evil acts began to flood in, for the first time in her life, she was alone, all alone...her parents were gone, one lost defending his country, other lost because of a natural disaster, her best friend Maurice was gone, without a trace, as well as Kludd, the promising student that Nyra actually grew to love...and now...she lost the love of her life, Metalbeak...Surtr, the one that had always believed in her when she joined the Pure Ones, the one who comforted her in her darkest hours, the one who would become her mate till death...everything that they had both worked for was all for naught...and she had never felt so alone in her life.

Throughout the entirety of the night and morning, Nyra had spent wallowing in her sorrow and grief. The pain was so bad that Nyra had contemplated suicide four times, but each time she held her claw to her throat, she couldn't bring herself to do it. She spent it hours denying what had happen, she pounded her talons into the wall so many times that a crack was becoming visible on the wall and her talons were slightly bleeding, she let out screams of agony and pain, and practically everything else that she could do to make the pain go away...

Then, after all of that, Nyra was now panting, with tears still trickling down her face, as she leaned against the wall as she quietly sobbed. But then she stopped, as she had came to a realization...everyone she cared about wouldn't had want her to spend the rest of her life wallowing in self-pity, no, they would want this moment to make her stronger, Surtr and Maurice would want her to continue leading the Pure Ones and Metalbeak would want her to defeat the Guardians...then she realize that the only way she will be able to keep going was _vengeance_...the Guardians were now the true source of all her pain and suffering. She didn't care what others said about not letting revenge rule her life, but she had nothing left...so, with a face of sheer determination, she walked out of her hollow.

A few minutes later, after arousing everyone from their sleep with a loud screech, everyone was now gathered under the sunlight emanating from the sunset, as Nyra was standing before them.

"Pure Ones!" Nyra bellowed, as her voice echoed throughout the cave, "We have lost the battle, but we shall win the war! For daring to defy us, the Guardians will suffer dearly!" She meant every single word of what she said, and she swore to herself that she would make Soren, Lyze, and everyone else affilated with the Guardians pay for what they had done, even if it took her the rest of her life to do it...

However, she noticed that the soldiers were no longer paying attention to her as they were watching a helmed owl come in...the helm was that of Metalbeak, and the owl who was wearing it...was none other than Kludd...

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**A/N: ...Wow...if there were a fanfiction award for the most emotional and dramatic chapter in this category, I believe this chapter would win hands down. Well, everyone, here you have it, the last part of Nyra's past, and how everything fell into place for the movie. I should assure you, I took no pleasure in scarring Surtr and turning him into the seemingly heartless monster that you see in the movie, as well as hurting Nyra so much, but it had to be done in order for all that happened in the movie, and in this story to show the side of Nyra and Metalbeak that was never revealed in the movie and probably never will. If you guys are wondering what happen to Maurice...don't sweat it, he will appear soon, and when he does, all shall be revealed...I would like to give a shoutout to TearfulFriend18 for the name of phase 3, Eternal Oblivion (the name of the eleventh chapter in his story, which by the way is very good! I would recommend reading it!). Two chapters from now shall be the beginning of the end, as the ultimate confrontation between Kludd and Skarmoris is close at hand and everything will be thrown on the line...READ AND REVIEW!**

**(P.S. Crazybird101, feel free to be deeply apalled by Metalbeak did to Nyra in this chapter...I would be, too)**

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated...I am serious, I would love, LOVE anyone who could possibly make art for this fic, sorry if I sound like a brat asking this, but I would love to see people's artistic interpretations of events and characters of this story...**_


	16. Shattered Dreams

**A/N: Okay, everyone, I hope you hadn't miss Kludd and the others too much, as we will return to our owls' friends, as well as figure out what Nix and the others are up to...if you haven't already... (P.S. We have officially broken the 100,000 words barrier!)**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**I do not own Through The Ghost or Shinedown.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl.**

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Chapter Sixteen: Shattered Dreams

_"Did you hide yourself away? Are you leaving through the ghost? Did you finally find a place above the shadows so the world will never know, the world never know you like I do..."_

- a verse from Through the Ghost by Shinedown

Nyra instantly woke up with a start as she was shuddering, tears brimming her eyes from her dream, which turned out to be the eight years of her time as a Pure One. After giving a few deep breathes and wiping her eyes, she looks around to find herself still in the same cave within the Labyrinth Peaks along with Kludd and the five Guardians that were accompanying her, two of them, Soren and Ezylryb, she held personally responsible for the worst moment of her life. However, when she gazed upon the Guardians, she realized something, something she fail to see three nights ago, she was _suppose _to hate them and want to kill them on sight, but now...she felt nothing, no hate, no anger, just plain nothing...

She looked back at Kludd, who was still sleeping, as she sighed and smiled at the slumbering Barn Owl, ever since he returned to the Pure Ones with her mate's crown, she finally felt a bit of happiness in her life that she had lost that night of the battle. Sure, the scars from losing everyone else that meant the world to her were still burning, but when she was with Kludd, all the pain became inexistent...

Knowing that it was still early (in the afternoon), as she was about to return to sleep when she noticed that on the other end of the huddle, Gylfie, the small Elf Owl, was gone from her spot between Twilight and Digger. Growing concerned, she got up, without stirring everyone else, as she went to the mouth of the cave. The storm that had struck during their trek through the fog had now subsided, and there was a lighter fog and a gentle breeze that coursed through her feathers. Then she noticed Gylfie, just looking at the sun as it began to set, as if in deep thought. "Uh...Gylfie, what are you doing up?" Nyra enquired.

The female Elf Owl quickly snapped out of it as she turned around and sighed when it turned out to be the white Barn Owl, "Oh...Nyra...I couldn't sleep, you?" She asked back.

"Ugh...bad daymare." Nyra said, it wasn't a lie for the most part, the two years before Metalbeak's death wasn't the best time for her.

"I see..." Gylfie said, before an awkward silence, like the many ones before, ensued, as the two female owls just stood there, out on the outside ledge, just feeling the winds.

It was a few minutes before one of them spoke up, "I'm sorry..." Gylfie merely said.

"For what?" Nyra asked, mystified.

"You know, for shoving you in the waters back at the bog, getting all that black stuff on you." The Elf Owl explained.

Nyra let out a "oh," she honestly forgotten about what the young owl did to her. Sure she was mad back then, but given all that happened after that, she merely gotten over it, as she admitted, "It's fine, I suppose I was a bit too vain back there."

"Well, I guess it's partially my fault. I guess I still had my dislike for prissy owls since my spat with Otulissa a while back." Gylfie admitted as well.

"Really? From what I had seen, Otulissa and you were getting along quite fine." Nyra remarked, not bothered being called prissy.

Gylfie smirked, "It wasn't always like that, it all started when..." and she went on to explain to Nyra how she nearly got into a fight with Otulissa, both of them being punished to organize the archives, and then them finding a common ground when Soren was brought up, and how they learn to get along after that. "…And we were laughing while Soren fail to notice his wings fidgeting." She finished with a chuckle remembering that day, and Nyra herself was laughing as well.

Then Nyra realized that she was actually laughing, something she hadn't done ever since her first night as a Pure One...she liked it, as it gave her a good feeling, something she never thought she would ever feel again. When you look past the obvious 'she's a Guardian, you're a Pure One' problem and her attitude towards owls who gave a damn about their appearances, she was actually a nice owl to have a conversation with, an actual conversation. Sure there was Kludd, but as much as she loved him, he wasn't much of a talker except during the times he is contemplating.

Gylfie was about feeling the same way about Nyra, she never thought she could actually have a good chat with a Pure One, and to say the least, it was nice to actually have another female she can relate to (Otulissa, she didn't exactly clicked with yet). But a looming thought enter her head, as she then asked with a questioning look, "So...who's Surtr?"

The white Barn Owl instantly stopped chuckling as she then donned a half-surprised and half-questioning look, "What?"

"_How could she know..._" Nyra said in her mind, as the bad feeling in her gizzard returned.

"Sorry, but when I woke up, unable to sleep, I couldn't help but noticed you were tossing in your sleep, and you kept moaning the name 'Surtr'..." Gylfie explained, but she then noticed the pained look in her eyes as she then added, feeling a bit guilty "But, if it is too painful to answer, I won't bother you on it..."

Nyra slightly smiled at the Elf Owl's sincerity, but it didn't make the bad feeling go away. However, as she looked at the Elf Owl, she began to ponder. Even though she still didn't trust the Guardians, she felt that she could trust the Elf Owl as well as the others, with the exception of Soren and Ezylryb, as she still felt unsure about those two, especially with Soren's attitude towards her throughout the journey.

"Metalbeak..." Nyra merely stated.

"Huh?" Gylfie asked, a little confused.

"Surtr was Metalbeak's old name when I had first met him. After the Battle of the Ice Claws, he was given the very helm that Kludd now wore, and he changed his name to fit the metal beak he now worn." Nyra explained.

This shocked Gylfie, she never once thought that Metalbeak would actually have a previous birthname, but as she watched the sad expression on the queen's face, she could tell that the name meant a lot to her, and now, she was feeling guilty. Three nights ago, she was rejoicing in Metalbeak's defeat, because he was going to take over the entire owl kingdom, but not once had she thought that he could be like any other owl...

"Glaux...I am so sorry...I didn't think he meant that much to you...but..." Gylfie stammered, but she knew there was no way to justify her and her friends to the queen, as she merely sighed, "he needed to be stopped..." as she close her eyes, preparing to be struck by Nyra...but it never came, as she open her eyes to find Nyra just standing there with a blank expression.

"To tell you the truth, I agree with you..." The white Barn Owl said with a sad smile, as she look at the sunset, "Ever since that battle, Surtr was never himself, and when he received that crown, he became an entirely different owl, the owl you knew today as Metalbeak...but he wasn't always like that." Nyra sighed, "There was once a time he actually smiled, and would think twice before taking an owl's life, no matter who that owl was..."

The Elf Owl was astonished that the one that got angry over her feathers getting dirty was now so somber, as she then said, "He sounded like a nice owl, I wish we would have met him...how did you two met anyway?"

Nyra smirked at Gylfie's compliment, and knowing that it wouldn't hurt to tell her, all she said was, "Well, it all started eight years ago..."

As the white Barn Owl told the Elf Owl her story, Kludd, the once king of the Pure Ones, was now moving a little, as his dream carried out...

'_Kludd and Nyra were back in St. Aegolius, within the throne room, as both of them were staring at each other with lovestruck eyes...for once, there was nothing to interfere with this moment...no soldiers...no Guardians...no Skarmoris...just him and the beautiful angel that stood in front of him, and soon they were up close as Nyra gave him a loving smile as they were about to meet their beaks as Kludd close his eyes and prepare to savor the moment..._'

"Kludd." A male voice called, prompting Kludd to open his eyes and see that in Nyra's place, was none other than Samuel, the snowy owl that foresaw the entire chain of events, just standing there.

Annoyed that his moment with Nyra was not only foiled for the third time, but this time in his dreams, "Oh, for glaux sake, you haunt me in real life and now you must haunt me in my dreams?"

The snowy owl gave a smirk and said, "I apologize, but you weren't exactly alone, and I really only needed to talk to you, so this was the only way of communicating."

This didn't change his angered expression as he then asked, "Just what are you? When we first met, you instantly appeared out of nowhere, then you disappear, as if you were never there, no one seemed to have seen you come in…just, what in hagsmire do you want from me?!" He finished with an exasperated moan.

Samuel sighed as he donned a concerned look; "I am here to have a talk with you regarding your brother..."

"Soren? What about him? Why don't you answer my questions?" Kludd demanded.

"You are heading down a very dark path, Kludd, if you keep pushing your brother and your family away, you will succumb to the darkness..." Samuel warned.

"WHAT?! What happen to 'they will vanquish the darkness that fell upon the land, and the king will realize what his heart truly desires?' Are you meaning to tell me that you are wrong?" Kludd asked in a suspicious tone.

"No, Kludd...but you can't spend the rest of your life hating your brother...remember the wonderful memories you had with him. Remember!" Samuel demanded with a stern voice.

Kludd's face lightened a little as he did remember, but his pride stood and his deep-rooted hatred still burned as he then muttered, "All I remember now is the shadow...Soren's shadow...the same damn shadow I been stuck in for years..."

"Kludd..." Samuel began to say.

"NO! I am sick of you messing with my life! I chose this life for myself, and my destiny is to defeat Soren once and for all and rule all of the owl kingdoms, that is what my heart truly desires!" Kludd screamed at him.

"Kludd, please...think of everyone who loves you, your family, your ma, your da, your sister, Mrs. P, and Soren would give anything to have you back." Samuel pleaded.

"I am...but my only family is Nyra and the Pure Ones...and nothing...I repeat, nothing is ever going to change that, now leave me be..." Kludd said sadly as he turned his back on him.

Samuel looked at Kludd with sadness as he then said, "As you wish...Lord Metalbeak..." The Barn Owl noticed the name and turned around, only to be blinded by a powerful light...

Kludd wakes up, startled, as he found himself back in the cave with the others and merely sighed. Then he felt something was missing, as he then looked to his right and noticed that his queen was gone. He quickly got up and was about to panic when he heard her voice from outside the cave, thus giving him relief...however, he was curious as to what she doing out there and who she was talking to, and started to inch towards the mouth of the cave...

"...And that brings us back to now." Nyra said, after telling Gylfie the story about Surtr, and the Elf Owl was slightly in tears from it.

"Glaux...that is so awful, I can't believe how Surtr could change so much..." Gylfie squeaked out.

"Yes...for so long I had hated the Guardians for what they done to him, but now...I don't know..." Nyra said.

"Don't know what?" Gylfie asked.

"I am suppose to hate you all yet, I'm suppose to want to kill Soren when I see him...now...I feel nothing...what is wrong with me?" Nyra asked while being a bit stupefied.

Gylfie was quite pondered by this as well, but she felt that she had an answer... "Maybe nothing is wrong, maybe you had found something to live for other than vengeance..." She suggested.

Nyra looked at her and then thought about the one who had came to her in her darkest hour...Kludd, "My glaux...you're right. Had not Kludd return to the Pure Ones...I may have killed myself trying to destroy the Guardians all by myself...but he came and…now, I no longer feel so...empty."

"Well maybe it is because Kludd and Surtr both shares a few similarities, they are both strong-willed owls, born with leadership skills, and both cares a lot about you." Gylfie pointed out, "I know I shouldn't say this for Soren's sake...but Kludd is lucky to have you."

Nyra smiled, but then the mention of Soren got her thinking, "Does Soren really hold me responsible for Kludd joining the Pure Ones?"

Gylfie sadly nodded, "Yes...he believes that you made him into a completely different owl, and as you had seen the night back in the bog...well, you can tell the rest."

The queen didn't know what to say to this, but what Gylfie just said made her thought the same thing, "What if he is right?" She asked.

"What do you mean?" Gylfie asked.

"What if what happened to Surtr is happening to Kludd, what if he is becoming a monster?" Nyra asked with full concern.

"Nyra, don't think that. What happened to Surtr was beyond all words horrible, but Kludd loves you, and the last thing he would want to do is hurt you." The Elf Owl reassured her.

As much as Nyra wanted to believe those words, the thought was still there, in the year Kludd had became Metalbeak, he hardly smiles, except in her presence, and he had shown a lot of hate towards Soren…and despites them working together back at the ravine, she could sense a lot of one-sided animosity between the two from Kludd. He may still love her, but what if his heart was becoming as black as Surtr's was, and the events that lead to Surtr's death repeats itself? Nyra was on the brink of despair when she lost her first love, and she knew that she wouldn't be able to take it if Kludd died as well…

Gylfie could see that Nyra was conflicted about what she said, and continue, "No offense to Surtr, but Kludd is nothing like Metalbeak, they may have both been scarred and hold deep grudges, but I know deep down that Kludd's heart is good, and he wouldn't want to see harm done upon anyone he cares about…"

Those words touched Nyra, as she then looked back at Gylfie, and those troubling thoughts seem to have faded away; for how long, she wasn't sure, but she knew that the Elf Owl was right. "…Thank you, Gylfie. You know, if you haven't tried standing for yourself, I believe you would have made a good Pure One." She smirked.

"Thank you…I guess," Gylfie thanked, a little unsure, as she then felt a little chilly, "We should head back inside, and get more rest…"

"Quite right, Gylfie." Nyra nodded.

Unbeknownst to the two, Kludd was listening in on the conversation; unfortunately, the snores that Twilight was making made it a little difficult to hear parts of it. All that he was deciphering was that Nyra was talking to Gylfie (he notice her not being in her spot between Digger and Twilight) about something, and he heard the name 'Surtr', although he didn't know whom he was.

However, Kludd's heart froze when he heard Nyra said, "What if Kludd is becoming a monster?"

The Barn Owl backed away a bit (thus not hearing Gylfie's response to that question), as he was shocked, did Nyra, the one of two owls that ever truly believe in him, the one he loves, actually think of him as a monster? Sure, he held great resentment towards Soren, and sure, he was willing to have a few Guardians killed if Soren hadn't fought him, and he had thoughts of killing him…but did that really characterize him as a monster?

Kludd decided to listen a little more to see if maybe he heard wrong, but his timing couldn't have been so bad, as he heard Gylfie said, "He is nothing like Metalbeak," and the Barn Owl was more devastated by that statement that he shrunk away before hearing more of what Gylfie said.

"_Nothing like Metalbeak? What did that small fry mean?_" Kludd thought, but before he could think anymore, he heard footsteps and noticed that the two females were coming in, so he quickly took his spot back next to Soren and quickly closed his eyes to preserve the allusion that he was still sleeping.

Nyra and Gylfie walked in to find the males still sleeping, so with a nod 'good morn', Gylfie returned to her spot next to Digger, and Nyra went to her spot next to Kludd, and as she was about to return to sleep, she gave one last glance at Kludd and merely smiled, how could she ever think that he would become as cruel as Metalbeak, that was just preposterous. So, she laid her head back on Kludd's shoulder and sighed with content as she returned to dreamland once more.

However, Kludd's mind was now befuddled, Nyra couldn't possibly had meant what she said...she had not once been bothered by any of his actions...unless she only acted that way because she feared him...what if his relationship with her had been based on nothing but fear? This thought was causing his heart to hurt, Nyra was the only female that Kludd had ever actually fell in love with, and was the one that always had faith in him...what if that was a lie as well? Kludd looked at Nyra who was resting her head on his shoulder once more, and he merely pushed all these terrible thoughts out of his head, and tried to get more sleep...

Soren, on the other hand, was now tossing as his dream began to bother him...

'_Soren awoke to find himself in the middle of a peculiar room laced with pillars surrounding the area _(**Guess where**)_, as he looked around. It's seems like he was alone, as the winds blew through the openings...however, when Soren tried to move, he couldn't. This surprised him was he suddenly start struggling but it was as if two invisible beings had their claws on his wings, and then without his consent, his body was turned toward his right, as he was now faced with a tip of a sword. This shocked Soren a bit...but who was holding the blade was what truly made his heart stop...his brother Kludd was holding it at him. There was a few things different with him though, the first one being that he was no longer donning Metalbeak's helmet, and his eyes...there were that of blood red and was filled with anger...and searing pain. "Kludd, please don't do this…I'm sorry…" Soren pleaded, but he didn't know exactly what he was sorry for, but it had a bit of a effect on Kludd, as his red eyes dimmed back to his normal eyes as he merely said, "So am I..." as he raised the sword and Soren braced for the pain as he thrust the sword forward..._'

Soren gasped and jumped forward as his back was now against the opposite wall, and was heavily panting. "Oh glaux...oh glaux...why did that feel so real?" Like the dream from the night he reunited with Kludd, it gave him the same strange feeling within his gizzard. Except the past dreams he been having were good ones of him and Kludd being together, serving as fellow Guardians, but this dream was _far_ from good, it was an utter daymare...

The young Barn Owl looked back at his brother, who was sleeping with Nyra resting on his shoulder, and merely sighed, for three nights he had been trying to think of a way to finally bring him home where he belongs, but now here they were, hours from confronting the very owl that began this whole series of events, and Kludd still strongly believe the same beliefs he had when they met again in the burning forest of Beaks. He didn't know what to do, if they succeeded in beating this 'Skarmoris', not only will Kludd return to the life of a Pure One, but he would have to tell his parents that their son is now the leaders of the despicable Pure Ones…

"Soren? Is everything alright, lad?" Soren looked to his right to find Ezylryb now awake, and with a look of concern.

Soren sighed as he said, "Bad daymare, that's all."

However, the Lyze didn't buy it, "Really? The way you just woke up just now sounded like more than a daymare." He said, with a raised brow.

"Well, I don't know what to say, all it was is nothing but a silly dream…" Soren lied, not willing to go into it.

"Silly? Now you are sounding like Kludd…I reckon that's what your dream been about?" The Screech Owl enquired.

The Barn Owl, knowing that he had saw through his lie, nodded, "Yes…"

"Want to talk about it? You know, somewhere with less ears?" Ezylryb asked, while gesturing to their sleeping friends and comrades. Soren gave a nod as they both got up and went back outside…

Soon, the two Guardians were now outside as the sun was partially halfway hidden within the horizon, signaling that it wasn't long before the other owls would be waking up soon.

"So…" Ezylryb began, "What had been troubling you lately in your dreams?"

"Well…it is kind of complicated, not to mention absurd…" Soren explained.

"Soren, we are Guardians, allied with the king and queen of the Pure Ones, I highly doubt that your dreams could be any more absurd than that." Ezylryb doubted.

"_He got a point, you know…_" Soren's mind told him.

"I guess you're right…" The Barn Owl agreed, as he then explained, "For the past few months when I last saw Kludd, I have been having these weird dreams about him…"

"Weird funny or weird strange?" Ezylryb asked.

"I guess you could say weird strange, as these dreams all had Kludd and I together, and the weirdest thing was that Kludd had the helm of a Guardian…" Soren said, a little awkward explaining it.

"Really?" Ezylryb said, slightly shocked by this revelation.

"Yes, and he was actually smiling…something that I hadn't seen him do so much since we were both young owlets." The younger owl explained.

"You think that these dreams may be pertinent?" The Lyze of Keil asked.

"Well, it has to mean something? Why else would I keep having these dreams?" Soren pointed out.

"That is an excellent question…" Ezylryb admitted while thinking a bit, "_Repeated dreams…dear glaux, could it be? Can he actually…_" But Ezylryb held that thought as he asked, "What about the dream you just have? The one that seemed to have you startled?"

The Barn Owl hesitated, he was unsure if he actually wanted to tell him of this disturbing dream, but judging by his mentor's determined look, he had to tell him, "I was alone in this chamber…I don't know where it was, but I was unable to move. Then all of the sudden, I was turned towards my right, and I saw him…"

"Who?" Ezylryb asked with a bit of intrigue.

"…Kludd…he was holding a sword to my chest, and his eyes…they were an awful red…I begged him to not do it…but he did…I woke up before I felt the blade puncture my heart." Soren shakily explained, as this was upsetting him.

The Whiskered Screech Owl had a look of concern as he saw his apprentice was now shuddering, the dream he described sounded disturbing, but what was more upsetting was what it meant.

Soren looked at his mentor and then demanded, "What? Do you know what this could mean? Tell me!"

"Keep it down, lad, do you want to wake everyone else up?" Lyze whispered, as he then explained with a hint of doubt in his voice, "There is one explanation for these dreams, including that one…but I doubt if it is even possible…"

"What? What?" Soren asked, anxious to figure out the meaning of these dreams.

Ezylryb sighed as he then said, "I believe you possess the ability of starsight…"

* * *

Meanwhile, in the midst of the Sea of Hoolemere, three owls were making their way through the slightly perturbed waves, the three owls in question were none other than Nix, the grass owl, followed by the two bumbling Long Eared Owls Jatt and Jutt, as earlier, Skarmoris sent them on a retrieval mission…who they were retrieving, it would soon be revealed…

As the silhouette of the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole was in view, Nix merely chuckled, "Well, there it is, boys, the so-called holy lands of the Guardians…"

Jatt gave a concerned look as they flew, "Do we have to go in there? That place, I heard, was crawling with Guardians!"

His cousin Jutt agreed, "Yeah, I also heard that they don't take kindly to us Pure Ones…"

Nix groaned as he then turned around (while flying a bit backwards), "That is _why_ we aren't going through the front door, if that scout is correct, we can sneak into the library and get what we need."

"Library? What is in a library that is so important that Skarmoris sent us? There's nothing but books!" Jutt pointed out.

"You idiot, it is not what's in the library we are after, it is _who _in the library we are taking. Now enough groveling and more flying!" Nix snarled in annoyance as he and the two cousins flew towards Ga'Hoole…

As the Pure Ones made their way to the library, Eglantine and her family were busy in the same place, as Eglantine was listening to her father Noctus reading another book about the Guardians, while Marella and Mrs. Plithiver were watching.

"And so, the Guardians triumphed over those dastardly hawk bandits and they were able to retrieve the lost artifact, and returned home in victory…the end." Noctus finished with a smile, prompting a clap from Eglantine.

"Yay! Can we hear some more?" Eglantine cheered ecstatically.

"Now, Eglantine, you don't want to hear all of them, or you would run out of new stories to listen to." Marella explained, but nonetheless amused by her daughter's enthusiasm.

"Naw-uh, Soren and the others always have stories to tell whenever he comes back from a mission, making it impass…imposs…" Eglantine tried to point out, but getting stuck on the last word.

"Impossible, dear…but I do agree with you." Mrs. P corrected, with a smile.

However, the mention of Soren prompted all of them to frown in silence, it had been three nights since they had bid him and his friends a safe journey, as well as the two Pure Ones that had come to them in need of help.

Eglantine then asked, "Ma…Da…do you think Soren can beat this bad guy?"

Noctus and Marella shared unsure glances, sure they had complete faith that Soren and his friends could beat whoever it was that taken over the Pure Ones, but there was still a mist of uncertainty, as not only did they not know who that owl was, but there were Pure Ones traveling with them, and Noctus still had trouble trusting that they would not harm them. But he knew that he couldn't say such thing to his daughter...

"Of course, sweetheart, good always triumph over evil, it's the bad guys that should be worried." Noctus reassured while hugging his daughter.

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure..." A sinister voice smarmed, shocking everyone to look behind them to reveal none other than Nix, with a dark look.

Marella and Mrs. P showed look of fear, along with Eglantine who was now clutching her father's feathers, as Noctus, a bit intimidated, but not frightened, merely asked sternly, "Who are you?"

"Geez, where are my manners? I am Nix, general of the Pure Ones army, and I just so happen to be acquainted with your son Kludd..." Nix sneered, as he began pacing around the family.

This shocked Noctus that he was faced with a Pure One but even more when he mentioned Kludd, "What...how do you know my son?!" He demanded.

"Well, we were both in the Pure Ones academy, not to mention fellow comrades..." Nix evilly smirked.

"What?! Are you insinuating that my eldest son would join the likes of you? No way, he is dead because of you!" Noctus screeched as he kept eye contact with him.

"Dead?" Nix asked, a little confused, "_He doesn't know? How...oh glaux, that Soren never told him...things had just gotten sweeter..._" He thought with a dark smile.

Eglantine saw the expression and was nonetheless frightened, "Da, I'm scared..." she said to her father.

"Don't worry, dear, I will take care of this, you go with your mother..." Noctus reassured as he pushed her towards her mother and Mrs. P, and they quickly grasped each other, as Noctus then accused, "Yes, you monsters killed him!"

Nix sadistically smirked, "Oh, don't blame us, blame your son for being a pitiful waste of existence that should of have his egg crushed before he was born."

This angered Noctus, "Don't you dare talk of him like that!" he screeched as he then charged and knocked him to the ground, "RUN! Get the Guardians!" he screamed to his family.

Taking heed of the male Barn Owl immediately, Marella, Mrs. P, and Eglantine quickly ran towards the door leading out of the library, when all of the sudden, two loud owls drop down in front of them, them being Jatt and Jutt.

"Going somewhere?" Jatt asked.

"Yeah, they were going to get the Guardians!" Jutt dumbly remarked, prompting Jatt to groan.

"I know that! It was just an expression! Now let's round these pretty girls up!" Jatt suggested, as they both menacingly approached the females.

"Oh, dear..." Mrs. P nervously enquired as the two brutes were closing in, as they ran the opposite direction.

But the two owls were too fast, as they closed in on them and Jatt grabbed Marella and Eglantine, while Jutt grabbed Mrs. P.

"LET US GO! YOU RUFFIANS!" Mrs. P hissed, as she struggled to slip out of Jutt's grasp

"You shut up or I have my cousin here kill the owlet!" Jutt threatened, as he gestured to Jatt, as he tightened his grip on the owlet, prompting a pained gasp for her, thus shutting the elderly snake up.

Noctus was busy holding Nix down, but the grass owl wouldn't have any of it, as he then pounded him in the gizzard and push him off, and mocked, "What, did I hurt poor daddy's feeling? Well I would be hurt knowing how much of a failure Kludd was..."

"Enough!" Noctus snarled, not willing to let this owl insult his eldest son's memories, as he swung his right talon at him, but Nix merely caught it, and then he swung Noctus into a nearby bookcase, as he crumbled to the ground.

"That's must be masculating for you, being defeated by a owl much younger than you." Nix insulted as he grabbed Noctus's throat, "Well, you can thank Lord Skarmoris for that..."

"Lord...Skarmoris?" Noctus asked, not recognizing the name, as Nix's talon clutched his throat tighter.

"The new king of the Pure Ones, and aspiring ruler of all the owl kingdoms. He gifted me and others like me with glaux-like strength and speed, and unmatched by any other owls. So to say the least, we will be treated no less than Glaux himself" The grass owl explained.

Then Jatt and Jutt flew in with the two female Barn Owls and the black mamba (**The wikia say that Mrs. P is a black mamba, so that is how it will be, comprende?**) in talons, and Jatt said, "We got them, Nix, let's get out of here!"

Nix sniggered darkly as he look back at Noctus, "So here's how it will play out, Skarmoris had cordially invited you four to his humble abode atop the almighty Pillar of Supremacy, and we are serving as your personal escort. So, if you dare try to fight me, I will kill your family..."

The male Barn Owl quickly glanced at his family, as the two cousins who were holding them captive, gave him darkly serious looks, as Noctus then gave Nix a fierce glare, "You aren't going to win, not you or Skarmoris, my son and his friends are coming...and they _will_ stop you and any owls like you..."

"Oh, please, there are _no _other owls like me..." The general smiled with malice.

"There are always owls like _you_." Noctus muttered. (**Avengers reference!**)

"Enough of your damn drabble, back to the Pillar of Supremacy we fly!" Nix ordered as he then clutched the father as they began walking towards the hole they made in the roof.

However, just as they were about to take flight, two certain owls were walking right in front of them, those owls were none other then LaRoche and Pip. Earlier, after cleaning up the wrecked chandelier that LaRoche had worked on for months, he and Pip had been in the library looking for proof that the owl's feather that he found in the main hall belong to none other than Kludd himself, and after a night full of work, they found it.

"Well, Pip, my friend, we have done it, we had successfully prove that this feather is without a doubt..." LaRoche smiled before he stopped and look to his right to find Soren's parents, nursemaid, and sister in grasps of three owls who were equally surprised to find two Guardians in the library. "Egad! Pure Ones!" He screeched, as he took battle stance and ordered, "Stay where you are!"

Nix's surprise was replaced with bewilderment by the Elf Owl's demand, "Excuse me? Do you actually think that a _small_ owl like you alone have the authority to tell us three _bigger_ owls what to do?"

"What do you mean alone? I have my comrade..." LaRoche corrected as he gestured to his left, only to find Pip not there, as he then heard shaking from the urn next to him, "Oh, boy..."

This prompted Nix and the others to laugh darkly, as the general then placed Noctus down (after issuing a 'move and your family dies' threat) as he approached the Elf Owl with dark intent, and soon, he was staring down the Guardian.

Not willing to be intimidated, LaRoche screeched, "Enough! You Pure Ones are beneath me! I am a Guardian, you dull creatures, and I will not be bullied by..."

Before LaRoche could finish that thought, Nix grabs him by the leg and slams him around on the ground making a few indents, and finishing with a powerful slam making a crater in the floor, leaving the Elf Owl in pain.

"Puny Guardian..." Nix mutters as he returned to the horrified Noctus and grabs him, and with a nod, he and the cousins took off with Soren and Kludd's family in tow through the hole, fulfilling what Skarmoris had set them out to do...while LaRoche let out a weak groan... (**Another Avengers reference!**)

* * *

As all of that went down in Ga'Hoole, Soren was now flabbergasted by what Ezylryb said, "I believe you possess the ability of starsight…"

"What? You mean, my dreams could be visions of the future?" Soren asked, of course he knew the answer, because he remembered Samuel, the snowy owl that had visited him the night he reunited with Kludd, saying that he had the ability of starsight, but still, it was hard to believe.

"I am not sure, as far as I am concerned, starsight is nothing but a legend." Ezylryb explained.

Soren was unable to said anything, but then he started shaking his head, "No...if that is so, that means my brother...is going to kill me?"

"Soren, you shouldn't think that..." The old owl scolded.

"Why not? I have been trying to reach out to Kludd for the last three nights, but nothing I did brought him to his senses, not even our favortie childhood story worked." The Barn Owl bitterly remarked.

However, the Screech Owl suggested, "Maybe it is best that you let him go...he has no intention of leaving the Pure Ones...if anything, he is more determined to reclaim his throne..."

"What?!" Soren nearly screamed, but didn't since the others were still sleeping, "You are telling me to let Kludd stay with that _woman_, and give up? There is no way in hagsmire am I ever going to do that, he is my BROTHER!" Soren snarled, not caring who it was he was talking to.

Ezylryb was taken aback by his anger, but he retorted with a bit of his own, "Now you listen here, you are asking Kludd to choose between his love and his family, you should know what he would pick in a landslide...the fact you are expecting him to abandon everything for you is just plain selfish.

"Selfish?" Soren repeated in disbelief, as he angrily asked, "I am the selfish one? Let me ask you this: Is it selfish of me for refusing to give up on my brother when others probably have? Is it selfish of me for wanting to give Eglantine her eldest brother back? It is selfish of me for wanting him to actually be my best owl at my own wedding? And is it selfish of me for wanting to see the smile of my parents when they have their eldest son back instead of anquish OF SEEING THE DAMN MONSTER KLUDD HAVE BECOME?!" Soren screamed at him with sheer anger, as the word 'Monster' repeated throughout the valley.

Everything was silence, as Soren was shuddering, and Ezylryb was astonished. The old owl had never in his life seen his apprentice so angry and upset, normally he would have scolded him for speaking to him with such disrespect, but seeing the pain in his eyes, all he could do was...embrace him.

The Barn Owl was a bit surprised by this, but as Ezylryb held his wings around him, his anger was replaced with sadness as he started to cry, as he said between sobs, "All I want...is my brother back...am I so wrong for wanting that?"

Lyze merely shook his head, "No, lad...you're not...no one should ever have to be in your position...I wish with all my heart that your brother would come back with us..." He meant it, Kludd would make an exceptional Guardian, and he would do anything to help him become one...

They stood there for a few minutes, as Ezylryb let Soren let out all his anguish, as the winds blew through the Labyrinth Peaks. They probably would have stand there longer hadn't a simple "Uh...guys?" haven't shook them out of it.

Both Soren and Ezylryb turned to find everyone else awake and all with concerned looks on their face, except Kludd, whose expression was merely blank. Then the owner of the voice, Digger, asked, "What is going on? We all heard Soren yell something...and we find you two...hugging?"

The two owls were embarrassed as they both let go of each other, as Ezylryb then explained, "It's nothing important, Soren and I were just having a heart-to-heart talk before we went off into battle."

"Well that was awfully kind of you," Nyra complimented, "And here I thought you weren't a hugger."

Ezylryb gave a minor glare as he then said, "Ha-ha, sometimes a comrade and friend is in need of an embrace, especially in their time of need..." as he looked at Soren, who gave him a sad smile.

"I wish Soren came to me for advice," Twilight muttered, "I could of given him musical encouragement..."

"Yeah, and wake everyone else with that racket in the process..." Digger quipped, prompting laughs from everyone else, and a glare from Twilight, but nothing from Kludd.

Gylfie merely smiled at her crush as she then said to Ezylryb, "Well, sir, this is it..."

"Indeed...tonight's the night we fly off to the true nesting grounds of the Pure Ones, the Pillar of Supremacy, where it all ends..." Ezylryb merely declared, "I just want to say, whether we triumph over this 'Skarmoris' or glaux forbid that we fail, it was an honor serving with each and one of you." He finished with a smile at everyone, especially at Nyra and Kludd, the former returning a smile as well, while Kludd merely stood there, still donning the blank expression.

"To the sky, we fly!" He bellowed, as he took flight, followed by Digger and Twilight, then Nyra and Gylfie.

Before Soren took to the sky, he looked at Kludd, as he noticed Kludd's expression hadn't changed for the past couple minutes, as he then asked him, "Brother? Are you all right? You look a bit out of sorts...

Kludd merely muttered without looking at him, "I am just fine..." as he spread his wings and went to the sky, leaving Soren, a bit concerned about his new attitude, to follow him.

However, Kludd was not alright, as a few minutes earlier, while trying to get back to sleep, he noticed Soren talking to Ezylryb about something and then going to the mouth of the cave. A bit intrigued, he carefully placed Nyra's head so that she didn't fall over and merely snuck to his way towards the entrance as he did with Nyra and Gylfie earlier as he tried to listen in on them, however, Twilight's snores made it next to impossible to hear anything...

But then he heard the angry words of his brother that would make Kludd's heart freeze... "THE DAMN MONSTER KLUDD HAVE BECOME!"

He was in sheer distraught when he heard those words, he was already perturbed and unable to sleep when he overheard Nyra called him a monster behind his back and Gylfie saying that he is nothing like Metalbeak...but to hear it from his own brother...it seemed to have wounded him the most. Was that how everyone saw him? Nothing but a heartless monster that have no business existing in this world?

Kludd couldn't believe it, yet when he heard those words, he felt his heart finally break (figuratively, of course) as he felt truly alone, he had pushed away his family so he could become ruler of the Pure Ones, who ended up betraying him for Skarmoris, he had donned Metalbeak's helm in hopes of honoring him, only to be labeled a monster by the one he love and his own brother, the one whose opinion he thought he didn't care about, the one who had never given up on him...until now...

All that was left now was him...just him and the cruel unforgiving world, never to be loved again...so be it, if they don't want him, he doesn't need them. All that was left for him now was his goal...to defeat Skarmoris, take back his throne, to defeat the Guardians, to rule the owl kingdoms, and to defeat his younger brother once and for all...these very goals cycled around in his head, as he flew off towards what he believe was his ultimate destiny...

* * *

**A/N: Whew, another chapter done and it hadn't been a week since my last update! Here we have Nyra and Gylfie finally seeing eye to eye, the return of our favorite starseer Samuel, as well as learning something new about Soren (although I think you guys knew that he had starsight when I mention it in chapter 8), and we figure out that Skarmoris had Nix and the two cousins owlnap our two brothers' family, thus the plot thickens. We also have a bit of miscommunications with Kludd, as well as angst from Soren. I hope I didn't make Nyra and Soren OOC, but I was trying to give Nyra a bit of an epiphany and emphasize how much Soren treasured his relationship with Kludd. However, when I ended this chapter, a lot of questions arised: Will Nyra see the light? Will Soren's recent dream come to fruition? Will Kludd be able to change his destiny before it's too late? Was Soren truly selfish for wanting his brother back? What does Skarmoris have planned for our heroes? Will I stop asking all these questions? The answer to the last one is yes...but to find all the answers to the other questions, stay tuned for the next chapter, which is the beginning of the end of Between Brothers. READ AND REVIEW! (Note: Do you guys like the song verses at the beginning of the chapter? I am planning on doing that all the way to the end)**

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated...**_


	17. Into The Belly Of The Beast

**A/N: Hello, everyone, when I started this story over a month ago, I had not expected that this story would become one of the most popular and longest stories within the LotG archive, and to think this is my first story…well, I'm not going to let this go to my head, as there is still more to be written. This chapter marks the beginning of the end, as we approached the long anticipated showdown between our heroes and the evil Lord Skarmoris, as well as a few shocking revelations. It all ends here…**

**(P.S. What did Link and Jabu-Jabu, Pinnochio and Monstro, and Jonah and that one whale all have in common with the name of this chapter?)**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**I do not own Blow Me Away or Breaking Benjamin.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl.**

* * *

Chapter Seventeen: Into the Belly of the Beast

_"Your cover's blown, no where to go, holding your fate (Loaded. I will walk alone)"_

-a verse from Blow Me Away by Breaking Benjamin

(**Cue the song Unstoppable by E.S. Posthumus**)

That night, the skies had suddenly grown dark and began to roil with thunderclouds, as if it had anticipated what would be happening tonight. In fact, several beings had taken heed of this sudden change in weather…

Back within the bog, the snake that had poisoned Digger finally arose from the physically-induced coma that was inflicted by Kludd, as it looked to the sky and gave a vicious hiss as he began to tug free of the tree it was wrapped around…

* * *

Within the river of the Hawks' Ravine, two bodies burst from the water, a golden eagle with a bump on his noggin, and a red-tailed hawk, as he looked like he had seen better days, as they were both sputtering as they washed ashore. The hawk, known as Harris, panted (and turned on his back) as he noticed the clouds overhead, "God, even after we had the most brutal beating…we are still in for a storm, eh, Fatal?" He looked at his partner with a questioning look.

"I am…strong…I am…handsome…I am…Fatal…" The golden eagle slowly breathed, as Fatal suddenly rolled over the hawk (ignoring the screech) and fallen asleep, prompting Harris to give a muffled groan…

* * *

Way back at the shrine that stood before Hoolemere, the echidna slowly walked out of his home as he saw the clouds shrouding the once clear skies, and the sea started to rumble with unprecedented rage. He then looked towards the direction of the Pure Ones territory with fear, as he silently prayed for the safety of the owls, as the fate of the kingdoms lies in their talons…

* * *

In the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole, Alice was busy walking through the corridors, as she was fetching LaRoche to come to another meeting of the Parliament.

"_Why is it that every time LaRoche make a big deal out of something and goes off to investigate, that I have to go play messenger?_" The nurse thought to herself, slightly annoyed.

After hearing that the Elf Owl was currently doing some 'work', as he called it, in the library and wished to not be disturbed. "_Well, too bad, LaRoche, if the king demands your presence, then so sprinking be it…_"

Soon, she was at the entrance to the library, and with a sigh, she walked in, while thinking mean thoughts of him…only to have them doused when she was shocked to find the main area of the library in disarray.

"What in hagsmire?" Alice gasped, as she saw the damage, as she then heard a groan…

Already worried, the Screech Owl quickly ran towards the origins of the groan, which turned out to be none other than LaRoche himself.

"My glaux, LaRoche!" Alice screeched, "Are you all right?! Speak to me!"

Already hurting physically and mentally from being beaten to a pulp by a Pure One, the Elf Owl merely moaned, "Kill…me…" as he fainted.

Ignoring the owl's moaning, Alice quickly brought him to his feet, as she then realized something, "Where's Pip?" she asked herself.

Then on cue, the urn the Little Owl was hiding in fell over, and as the urn shattered, Pip rolled out unscathed.

"Pip! What happened here?" The elderly owl screeched.

After recovering a bit from his tumble, Pip started talking in pips real fast as he made erratic wings motions.

"Really? Why were there Pure Ones here?" Alice asked a little shocked, as she miraculously understood the owl's gibberish.

The scout continued as he all of the sudden imitated an evil looking owl and makes an evil laugh (like a chipmunk version of an evil laugh).

"WHAT?! They took Soren's family?" The Screech Owl said in horrification.

Pip nodded, as Alice was mortified, "Oh glaux…Pip, I need you to help me get LaRoche to the infirmary, and then we need to tell the king…"

A few minutes later, the Parliament was suddenly in an uproar over what had transpired.

"Pure Ones? Taking owls from here?" Madame Plonk asked, frightened.

"Are we being threatened?" Bubo questioned.

"What is your order, your majesties?" Another elder demanded.

The King and Queen were both flustered as the whole parliament was now in disarrayed from what Alice had told them, as Boron bellowed, "Silence!"

The entire room grew silent as the snowy owl continued, "This is what this Skarmoris wanted, for all of us to panic, but rest assured, he will not get away with this, we must take action! We must fly to the Pillar of Supremacy and put a end to this madness." This prompted a few cheers and agreements, but then Strix Struma burst in, as she was sopping wet.

"I hope I didn't hear you say 'fly', because the storm around Ga'Hoole had escalated to a severe maelstrom, no one can fly through it!" Strix Struma panted, causing everyone to go silent, "And even worse…it shows no signs of letting up. We are practically trapped."

As silence continued, Bubo asked, "Are you sure there's nothing we can do?"

"All we can do now…is pray that Soren and the others know what they are doing…" Boron said, as he sadly declared, "This meeting is dismissed…"

And with that, the parliament then dismissed with defeat, as there was nothing they could do…

As soon as Strix Struma walked out, none other than Otulissa quickly confronted her…

"Well? Aren't the Guardians going to do anything? Are we taking flight?" Otulissa badgered the elder short-eared owl, as tears threaten to fall from her eyes.

"I am afraid not, dear, the storm is too strong, and flying in it would be foolhardy." Strix sadly admitted.

"No…no, there got to be something!" Otulissa cried with hysterics, "We need to help them! Soren and the others could be in trouble!"

"Snap out of it, Otulissa!" Strix screeched as she gripped the young Short-Eared Owl, "I am sorry, but there is NOTHING we can do…" However, tears started to build up in her eyes, "Nothing…whatsoever…" She repeated.

Otulissa could tell that she was worried about a certain Great Gray Owl, as she then hugged her, as they both let out their tears, "I don't want to lose him, Strix, I love him too much…"

"I know, trust me, I know…" Strix said as she tried to calm her down.

Watching this sad scene, Alice merely sighed as she look to the skies of darkness (**Reference to your story, TearfulFriend18!**) with tears in her eyes, as she prayed, "_Please, Soren, Ezylryb, and everyone else…come home safely._"

* * *

At the Pillar of Supremacy, Nix and his cohorts were busy watching the storm brews from in front of the doors to the throne room within the upper hall.

Nix then said with a dark smirk, "Well, boys, looks like we are in for one hagsmire of a storm…"

The two Long Eared Owl cousins looked at the general with concern and fear as Jatt asked, "Do you mean literally or as a metaphor?"

However, the grass owl didn't answer, as he heard thunder clapping in the sky; he had a feeling within his gizzard (or that was just the effect from the corpses he been eating) that tonight, he will be settling the score with a certain Barn Owl…

Meanwhile, within the throne room, Skarmoris was busy sharpening his silver swords as he looked out to the sea, which was now crashing against each other that like that of soldiers within a mighty battle…as like his general, the usurper king had a feeling that tonight was the night he was to expect a group of owls…one of them that would try to take back his throne, but he was confident that in the end…he would come out on top…and he would set out to accomplish what many kings before him had fail to do since the beginning of time….

From afar, atop one of the many spires that stick out of the ocean, Samuel, the prophet that had foreseen all of this, looked with concern as he felt the mighty winds flew through his feathers, as well as rain blowing around him. Tonight was the night where everything would come into place, and where it will all end…

* * *

Further away from the Pillar of Supremacy, a band of seven was flying between rows of spires as they approached the said destination. Leading them was none other than Kludd, as his eyes were that of sheer determination and indifference as he intended on defeating the owl that had kicked him from the throne, humiliated him, forced him to go to the Guardians, and practically put him through hagsmire. However, despite having six other owls behind them, one of them who he once loved, and another one being his own blood, he never felt so alone…all he had now to keep him going was his goals…and damn it, he was going to accomplish it no matter the cost.

Behind him, Nyra looked at her love with concern, as she noticed how quiet he had been since they left their roost in the Labyrinth Peaks, and she could tell that she wasn't the only one, as she then looked to her right to see his brother, Soren, sharing the same expression.

But before she could think any more of it, she saw the silhouette of the place she had once called home for five years, and where her best and worst memories were created, as she then whispered with anxiety in her heart, "There it is, _Le Pilier de la Suprématie_…"

"The Pillar of Supremacy…" Gylfie said, as she gave an understanding yet concerned look to the white Barn Owl, as she now knew of the bad memories that plagued the queen, especially since they were now heading to the origins of where it spawned.

"Needless to said…hagsmire on earth." Digger gulped, as he quickly felt fear striking his heart, as he gave a concerned look to the Elf Owl, as he worried deeply for her, given all that had happen over the last three nights. However, his concern was replaced with annoyance as he screeched to Twilight, who had been playing music on his lute (**The song from above…**), "Will you stop playing that music?! This is serious!"

"Well, excuse me for giving a little mood music as we are about to charge headfirst into the heart of the enemy territory, with the fate of everyone resting on us!" Twilight sarcastically spat.

"I wouldn't say headfirst, my friend." Ezylryb, who was just as anxious as the others as they approached the Pillar, as he noticed a few Pure Ones patrolling the area, as they were flying towards the group.

This quickly prompted everyone to hide behind one of the spire, which fortunately had a good view of the base. Even after the Pure Ones had passed them, they were now spying on the entrance, as the large doors that was still standing after all these years was heavily fortified.

"So…how do we get in without being spotted?" Digger asked. This prompted everyone to look at Nyra (except Kludd, who kept his eyes on the door).

Nyra noticed the others looking at her, and asked, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You're kidding, right?" Twilight asked, "You're a Pure One the longest out of all of us period, you should know how to get in."

The white Barn Owl sighed, "That I do, but the only way we _can _get in without detection is through that door, but it only opens to a screech of a Pure One, and I highly doubt that they will open to my screech."

"Hmmm…that is not good, I'm afraid, what says you, Kludd? Soren asked, while in thought, however, no one answered, "Kludd?" Soren repeated, as he turned around, and gave a gasp. Everyone else looked the other way to find in horror that Kludd was not there, then they looked back at the door to find the Barn Owl flying to the door.

"What is he doing?" Ezylryb snarled in gritted beak.

"Kludd! Get back here!" Soren pleaded.

However, Kludd did not pay heed, as he landed in front of the door, and by the look of his face, he seem to know what he was doing, as he let out a screech, shocking everyone.

"He's going to get us caught!" Gylfie screeched.

Unexpectedly, the doors began to open, but as soon as it did, Kludd quickly went off to the side, as a random Pure One walked outside, as he didn't recognize the screech. Then, as soon as the owl was far enough out, Kludd then bashed him hard on the head, as the Pure One fell to the ground unconscious.

The new Metalbeak then said with annoyance, "Well, aren't you guys coming or are you going to wait for another Pure One to come out?"

Quite impressed with the Barn Owl's initiative, Ezylryb and the others quickly flew to the entrance as the Lyze complimented, "Well, lad, that was quick thinking…although I wish you fill us in on the idea…"

"Oh, please, the best way to get things done is with speed and precision, not one or the other. Now come on!" Kludd just shook off with bitterness, as he walked through the doors.

Slightly surprised by his brother's attitude, Soren followed after him, as well as Twilight, Ezylryb, and Digger…but Nyra merely stood there as she stared at the door and felt the memory of when she first came here (**see ch 14 if you need reference**), as she felt more anxiety than she did before.

However, Gylfie, who was sticking behind as well, then gave a look of assurance to her, "It will be fine. The sooner we stop Skarmoris, the sooner you can leave this place and never look back."

Nyra gave a sad smile, as she let out a long sigh and together, the Elf and Barn Owl both walked in after the males.

As soon as the queen step in and saw the main hall, she felt more memories flood in, as she remembered how she first met her mate Surtr, and how he faked his own defeat just to help her earn her place within the Pure Ones ranks. However, before she could remember more, she is quickly pulled behind a rock, as two Pure Ones walked by.

"For crying out loud, woman, it would help if you stop blanking out when you're out in the open!" Ezylryb scolded, as he was the one who pulled her in.

"Sorry..." Nyra sarcastically sneered.

"Okay, we are now within the tower. What now?" Soren asked Nyra, as he saw a couple Pure Ones sparring on the training ground.

"Well, if my memories serves me right, we are currently in the normal training grounds; knowing Skarmoris, he should be within the throne room, which is towards the top of the tower…so we should take that tunnel right there," She gestured to the tunnel not far from where they were hiding, "That should take us straight to the higher chambers and the elites' training grounds, where we should find the doors to the throne room." She explained.

"Sounds simple enough…" Twilight smirked.

"I highly doubt it," Kludd muttered, prompting more concerned looks from the band, as he then quickly dashed towards the tunnel.

"…Is it just me, or is Kludd becoming more like himself at the beginning of the journey?" Digger pointed out.

"Hmm…I guess the stress must be getting to him." The Lyze said, being just as unsure about his behavior.

"Kludd…" Nyra sighed, as she was the most concerned out of all of them.

"Come on, we must keep moving." Soren stated, as he and the others quickly dashed into the tunnel leading upward.

Fortunately, the tunnel was uninhabited as the owls were actually flying through it…but needless to say, it was quite long.

"Glaux, did you Pure Ones use to fly up these tunnels?" Digger asked Nyra as he was getting exhausted already.

"Well, many owls thought it was a way of building wing muscles, as well as endurance and stamina for longer flights." Nyra explained.

"Really?" Digger asked a bit surprised.

"Either that, or it was a major design flaw on our forefathers' parts." Nyra quipped dryly, prompting the Burrowing Owl to droop.

"I wouldn't be too worried, Digger," Gylfie smiled, "I think I see light up ahead."

Indeed, the group of owls were soon out of the tunnels, only to be met with shock as the elites' training grounds was practically swarmed with soldiers, sparring, fighting…and for some reason unknown, marching in place while humming a ominous tone (**Wizard of Oz reference…can you guess the music they humming?**)

Everyone, including Kludd, as his indifference scowl was momentarily daunted into a shocked look, as Soren said with wide eyes, "Wow…that is a lot of elites for an army." Everyone else nodded in agreement, as they quickly ducked behind another rock.

"Okay…how are we going to get from here to over there?" Ezylryb asked with a bit of frustration as he pointed at the door at the far end of the chamber.

"Well, we can't sneak through them…" Soren pointed out, as the Pure Ones were moving around a lot, "Especially all seven of us."

"Yes, and I doubt we can go around…" Gylfie nodded, as she couldn't find a clear path around the giant training ground.

"So through and around is out of the question," Kludd confirmed, as he eyed the ceiling with a smug smirk, "So I guess we have to go over it…"

"How? I doubt that we can fly over them without being detected." Twilight asked suspiciously.

"Not fly, Twilight…merely hopping overhead." The masked Barn Owl corrected, as he pointed out the formations of the rock ceiling and the structural arches.

After a few sounds of realization were made, Digger asked, "So how are we going to get up there? Those bullies are bound to see one of us if we try flying up there!"

"That's why one of us flies up at a time, but we need to be quick! Twilight, you're first!" Kludd ordered.

This prompted a surprised look from the Great Gray Owl as he then returned his glance to the ceiling, as he let out a deep exhale and in seconds he quickly flapped his way up to a nearby arch. He panted and return his sight to the others and raised his wing as a signal for 'I made it.' This process repeated as Kludd sent Digger, Gylfie, and Ezylryb. Soon it was just him, Nyra, and Soren...

"Okay, now you, Nyra." Kludd ordered roughly.

The queen was slightly peeved that Kludd was being a bit more pushy as she then spread her wings and flew up with an 'hmph'.

"Now, it's you and me, Soren. Get your tailfeathers up there." Kludd demanded.

Soren eyed the arch as he spread his wings, but then he turned his head and asked, "Kludd, is everything alright? You seemed to be a bit cold, especially towards Nyra. Did something happen?"

The scarred Barn Owl gave a grunt as he snarled, "I am just fine, now get your DAMN tailfeathers up there before we get spotted!"

This surprised Soren, as he jumped back a bit from his brother's anger, as he then spread his wings and then flew up to the arch, and Kludd, after making sure no soldiers were looking, simply flew up as well.

Up on the arch, the band stared down at the floor below, as they watched the elites sparred with each others, practice battle manuvers, and some of them...eating?

"Why would the Pure Ones be feasting on the training grounds?" Soren asked, a little confused.

"You got me, we had never allowed feasting anywhere else but in our hollows or the main hall." Nyra explained.

"What exactly are they eating?" Digger questioned as he tried to get a better look, but as he did, a horrid smell invaded his beak, "Pee-ew! Whatever it is, it is ripe!"

Ezylryb took a sniff and he felt a grimace coming on as well, but there was something awfully familiar about it...something 'deathly' familiar about it.

"Let me see..." Gylfie said, while taking a close look as she can, as she was looking down at one of the soldiers that were eating, while ignoring the bad smell. From looking around, she was perturbed to find claws and feathers... "_I feel sorry for those birds..._" She thought, but her thought train was horribly derailed when part of the thing the Pure One was eating fell off...it was a helmed head of an owl.

This horrified the entire band, as well as Kludd, whose expression had turned to horrid shock.

"OH MY GLAUX!" Nyra screeched as her face turned to sheer terror.

"They're eating owls?!" Soren asked, utterly mortified.

"Oh no…" Ezylryb muttered, as he saw the head.

"What kind of sick joke is this?!" Digger gasped.

"I don't think it is a joke..." Twilight fearfully answered.

"Those bastards..." Kludd snarled in a low voice, as his shock turned to anger.

However, out of all of them, Gylfie was taking it the hardest, as she covered her eyes as she tried to shake the image out...but it was still there. "Oh glaux...oh glaux...I think I am going to be sick." she rapidly breathed as she gripped her stomach and her beak, when one of her talons stepped back on air, and soon, she started to fall back, "AH!" She quickly screeched as she was falling.

"Gylfie!" Everyone screeched as they try to reach for her.

The Elf Owl braced herself and closed her eyes for when she hit the ground and the Pure Ones starts feasting on her...but that feeling never came as she felt something gripped her talon tight. She opened her eyes as she see her crush Digger gripping her right talon with his left as he was trying to pull her up with the help of the others.

"Hang on, Gylfie!" Digger pleaded as he began pulling her up.

"Don't worry, I am hanging!" Gylfie said with a bit of panicky humor, as she was pulled onto the arch. As soon she was on solid ground, she quickly hugged the Burrowing Owl and was crying.

The Tracker was unsure of what to do as his secret love was crying into his feathers, as he looked at the others. Kludd had a annoyed look as he rolled his eyes, while Twilight and Soren were mouthing 'comfort her' to him, as Nyra and Ezylryb were giving him a 'go on' look. So, the male owl placed his right wing on her back as he stroked it smoothly as he shushed and said, "It's alright, I got ya. No mean, awfully demented owls gonna get ya."

Nyra watched the two with a sad smile, as it reminded her of when her mother died, and how Surtr was there to comfort her doing the same thing Digger was to Gylfie. It made her kind of jealous...but regardless, she was happy for them.

Gylfie's sobs immediately went silent as she then gave Digger a smile, "Thank you. I'm glad that you are always there for me."

"Of course I am, I will always be there for you, no matter what." The Burrowing Owl smiled. Then the two started to look at each other with those eyes as they suddenly felt something, as if they realize that they were meant to be together...

"Oh, how touching." A bitter voice quipped, shattering the moment as everyone then looked at Kludd with a bit of annoyance, "While you guys are dealing with your moment, would someone mind telling me why MY soldiers are feeding on corpses of MY other soldiers?!" He snarled.

Ezylryb then sighed, as he looked down upon them, "This could mean two things...one, those owls are very hungry...or..."

"Or?" Kludd asked, with an impatience glare.

"Or...Skarmoris is utilizing the _Cannabis_ _Regime_..." Ezylryb said in a ominous voice.

"The Canna-what?" Digger asked, as he still had his right wing around Gylfie.

"The Cannabis Regime." The Screech Owl repeated, "It is a very dark and forbidden technique that was once rumored to been invented by the king of Hagsmire himself. It is said that the flesh of any owl has this special chemical within it that when digested by another owl, it causes a very vicious catalyst with the mind of the owl."

"Meaning?" Twilight asked, himself a bit curious in this dark method.

"It was shown to increase the physical prowess of an owl, giving him the strength of a hundred owls and the speed of a flying arrow, thus becoming a powerful foe to face in battle..." Ezylryb explained, but then he donned a serious look, "However, it was also said that if an owl was to eat it, unless his will of that of many steels, he would lose all touch with his emotions and his mind, and will only heed an authorative voice, much like that of moonblinking. To say the least, they become the ultimate soldiers..."

"Oh glaux..." Soren said, feeling fear piercing his heart.

This also perturbed Nyra, as she remembered Jatt and Jutt. Doubting that they have 'the will of many steels', she felt a little sadness for the cousins, as they are probably one of them now. Sure, she was angered at them for betraying her and Kludd, but she felt deep inside that they didn't deserve such a cruel fate...

However, Kludd did not feel the same way, as he just blew it off, as he said, "Come on, we have to put a stop to this..." as he prepared to hop from one arch to another.

Soren was shocked, "Kludd?! Aren't you the least daunted by this? We are dealing with an army with un-owl like strength and speed, that means Skarmoris could be one of them as well! We need to think this through!" He pleaded.

"It doesn't matter if he has over a million of those owls at his command! All I know is that I am going to take back my throne, and I am not going to let such demented eating habits get in my way!" Kludd screeched at Soren with anger, as he jumped to the next arch.

"Dammit Kludd..." Soren muttered as he followed him, only to be followed by the others, as they were growing even more concerned about their Pure One friend. Soon, Kludd stopped at an arch at the other end of the training grounds, as everyone else stopped alongside him, as they were now overhead two big doors, ones, Kludd reckoned, led into the throne room.

"I take it these are the doors to the king's chamber?" Kludd asked Nyra without looking to face her.

Nyra gave him another annoyed glare as she nodded, as Kludd continued, "Okay, the big question is how we get in without being noticed…"

However, the white Barn Owl asked, "Milord, is everything alright? You have been acting very hostile tonight…"

"Oh for glaux sake…" Kludd mumbled, annoyed with all the damn questions as he then turned to Nyra with a snarl, "I am FINE! I have been fine! I am sick of everyone asking me that!"

The queen jumped back, quite surprised by her king's anger, Kludd had never yelled at her once, even when he became king, and was now hurt and deeply worried for him. Soren and the others were surprised as well, as even they knew that the new Metalbeak had never once raised his voice at her...

However, before any of them could say anything about this, they heard doors opening, as they turned their eyes towards the big doors, as three figures walked out of there...namely, Nix and the two cousins Jatt and Jutt.

"Nix..." Kludd snarled deeply, ever since they met, they have hated each others with all their gizzard, and such hate had worsen when Kludd became king, but what finally tip the iceberg was when Nix swore his allegiance to Skarmoris three nights back and it prompted all the other owls to follow in his lead. To say the least, Nix was high on his list of owls he want to kill.

Soren immediately saw Kludd's dark expression, as he quickly pleaded, "Kludd...please, calm down...we can't afford to be seen by everyone."

However, Nix then bellowed out to the training grounds, "Soldiers! Report to the main hall! Our guests will be here any time now, and Skarmoris would like to have them brought to him as soon as possible! NOW GO!"

The soldiers didn't say anything (since they can't talk), but they heeded as they cleared out of the training grounds, leaving only the three commanders and the band up in the rafters...

"Well, that makes getting in easier..." Digger quipped. Nyra agreed with him, as she then look at Jatt and Jutt, as they were both donning serious expressions, much like the soldiers she had seen so far, as she felt a bit of sorrow for the two cousins...

Fortunately, her sorrow was replaced with hidden joy as Jatt then asked, "Uh, Nix? When did Skarmoris tell us to tell them that?"

"He didn't." Nix plainly answered.

The cousins gasped, "But Nix, you seen what he's capable of! Skarmoris is going to be mad!" Jutt shuddered.

"Oh, what the king don't know won't hurt him, besides, Kludd and I have a little thing to settle!" Nix brushed off.

Kludd's angered expression tightened a bit as his name was mentioned.

"I don't get it, Nix. What did Kludd ever do to you that was so bad? I doubt it is just about what he pulled on you during the academy training..." Jatt said, deeply curious.

"Oh, you're damn straight it is more than what he did! It is the fact that Nyra chosed that worthless klutz..." This prompted a grunt from Kludd, "Over me, despite the fact he cheated. He also came back, waltzing in with that damn coot's helmet..." Nyra gave a snarl at the insult against her mate, "And you know what our damn wench of a queen did?" This angered both Nyra and Kludd, "She goes and makes him king! That should of been me! Not that idiot!" Nix screeched.

Kludd began to shake with fury, as Soren pleaded, "Kludd, please!"

"Him, Nyra, and that damn brother of his...I had hated Barn Owls all my life, especially when that damn Barn Owl beated me up because I was giving his damn little brother a lesson in how cruel life truly is." Nix snarled, as he remembered that day.

This prompted Kludd's eyes to widen and Soren to gasp, as they WERE the owls that Nix had mentioned. "It can't be..." Kludd said in a bitter tone.

"What?" Ezylryb asked, as he was a bit unsettled by Kludd's reaction.

"I don't believe it." Soren whispered, as he remember what he would have done to him had Kludd not been there to protect him.

"What? How do you know him?" Gylfie asked Soren, very confused.

However, their questions went unanswered, as they listened to Jutt, "I am sorry about that, General."

"General?" Kludd and Nyra both said simultaneously, as they were both equally dumbfounded (and outraged) that Skarmoris gave him such a high position.

Nix merely chuckled, "I have no need for your fools' pity, all I know is the moment I see that owl, I will kill him in the most cruel and tormenting way possible."

Kludd then prepared to lunge down at him, but his brother begged, "Don't listen to him, he's taunting you!"

Unfortunately, Nix pushed a little too far..."As for the queen...let's just say I will show her who the superior owl is..." He darkly sniggered.

Something inside of Kludd snapped, despite how hurt he was from what Nyra said about him, he wasn't going to let anyone else claim her, even if it _kills_ him, as then let out a powerful screech and his eyes went red as he then bullet dived at the grass owl, and pound him hard into the ground with his talon at his throat. This horrified Jatt and Jutt as they recognized the helm of their old master. Their fears intensified when they saw six other owls flying down to join him, one of them being their old queen, Nyra, the one they used to fear the most aside from Metalbeak (the old one) and now Skarmoris...

Nix blinked his eyes as he saw the owl that had him pinned down, as he gave a dark smile and chuckled, "Milord...how nice it is to see you..."

The new Metalbeak let out a screech, "Shut up, you damn traitor! You have no idea how much you made me mad..."

"How could I be a traitor if I had no loyalty to you at all?" Nix sneered.

"Once I am through with you, you going to wish you had." Kludd snarled as he gripped his throat tighter.

"Oh, I don't think so." Nix evilly smirked as he then with all his enhanced strength, he shoved him hard in the gizzard and off of him, surprising the Barn Owl.

"Damn it...not you too." Kludd muttered, as he gripped his sore abdomen, but then Nix punched him hard in the face and then he charged him out into the training grounds...

"KLUDD!" Soren and Nyra screamed in unison as they, followed by the others, were following them, but then Jatt and Jutt stepped in the way.

"Sorry, but Nix specifically requested that he fights Kludd mano e mano." Jatt merely stated in a mock gentleman tone.

"...By the way, you are looking nice, even when you're mad." Jutt whimpered as they saw Nyra's face contorted in a glare

"Boys..." Nyra said, "As happy I am to see that you both haven't succumb to the Cannabis Regime, I will not hestiate to rip both your tongues out, and shove one of your empty heads up the other's tailfeathers!" She threatened with red eyes (**Hancock reference!**).

The two Long-Eared Owls shared frightened looks, for four years they had served Metalbeak, they always feared his mate, and now, they were face to face with the one of the scariest owls...

Meanwhile, the fight between the two owls was becoming one-sided, as Kludd was getting pounded by Nix. It certainly didn't help that Nix now had abnormal strength and speed, as he then gave Kludd another wing slap, knocking him to the ground.

"Look at how far the mighty had fallen..." Nix taunted, as he gave the Barn Owl a kick in the gizzard, "Look at the one with the so called 'exceptional promise', LOOK AT YOU!" he kicked Kludd again, "I had always dreamt of when I would have you begging for mercy..." The grass owl gripped Kludd's throat, "And now...it will come true!" as he smashed Kludd's head into the ground, as unbeknownst to them, a decent crack appeared in the black helm.

This attack left Kludd slightly dazed as he looked at the grass owl with sheer hatred, "Damn you to hagsmire..." Kludd snarled.

The general chuckled, "If anyone deserves to be there, it is you, I had spent all my life living with an abusive bastard of a father, at least you had someone that gave a damn about you..." as his voice turned to that of cold bitterness, but then it turned to anger, "You are an ungrateful ingrate, and it will do me great pleasure to end your pitiful existence."

Those words, despite the owl it was coming, had struck Kludd, as it prompted him to think of his family...but he shook it off with rage, "I seriously didn't come to listen to your sob story, I beated your tailfeathers once, I can do it again." He muttered, as he remembered recognizing him as the same owl he encountered nine years back.

"Again?" Nix asked, when all of the sudden, as he looked at who was once his king straight in the eyes, and for a moment, Kludd's red eyes returned to his normal brown eyes, and felt a major deja vu moment as he stared into them. "You..." Nix gasped, as he felt something snapped within him.

"That's right, you bastard, it's me, the owl that beated you and your two friends to a bloody pulp nine years back." The Barn Owl smirked as he saw the astonishment in his eyes.

However, what Nix did next surprised him, he began to laugh...in fact, he was laughing hard. Kludd suddenly felt a bad feeling in his gizzard when he was listening to his chortles.

"Unbelievable..." Nix laughed, as he finished, "This ought to be one of the sweetest ironies that my ears had the pleasure to hear."

"What do you mean?" Kludd asked with a scowl.

"Think about it, you fool, nine years ago, you took on me and my boys all by yourself just to protect your precious brother. Now, all you wish is that brother's death. In fact, that is the main reason you became king, isn't it?" Nix explained, while gripping the pinned Barn Owl tighter with a devious smile.

"No...I mean..." Kludd stuttered, and groan inwardly as Nix caught him in what many smart owls call a paradox, but then he gave a vicious growl at the grass owl, "You shut the sprink up!"

Nix then gave him the darkest smile that Kludd had ever seen, "You wanna know the only thing wrong with killing you, Kludd? I can only do it once." (**Saw 3D: The Final Chapter reference!**) "That is why I am going to make your last moments a living hagsmire..." Then, Nix grabbed a nearby sword, probably left behind by another owl when they were training, and held it to his throat, as he continued. "It's a sheer shame that you won't be around when Skarmoris lead us to victory over the accursed Guardians and..." Nix taunted, as he closed in on his face, "...It will be even sweeter when I kill your brother..." (**This was inspired by you, TearfulFriend18!**)

When Nix said those four words, something inside of Kludd suddenly filled with rage, half of it was fueled from the thought of his brother, as well as his father always choosing him over his eldest son, as if it was his and his duty alone to defeat and kill Soren. However, another half arose, a half Kludd thought he had abandoned a long time ago, as he felt the need to protect him, which was confusing him...why does he want to kill _and_ protect his brother? This made no sense at all.

Regardless, the rage within his heart and soul was unleashed, as Kludd let out a powerful screech that echoed throughout the room (but, thankfully, not throughout the entire tower), as with newfound strength, he threw the surprised Nix off, and waste no time as he started pummeling him with his wings and cutting him with his battle claws, and finishing with a powerful talon uppercut, knocking him to the ground, as the Barn Owl was now panting with anger, "You will never lay a talon on my brother, not while I am still breathing."

Nix, however, was still conscious, as he then got back up to his feet, but he was stumbling a bit as Kludd did a good number on him, "Dammit, I got to admit, I underestimated you." He groaned, but then he let out a chuckle, "But you can never kill me, you won't kill your brother, because I have what you will never have...the gizzard to actually take another owl's life." As he prepared to charge at the Barn Owl once more with sword in talon.

But then out of nowhere, a blur rammed Nix hard into a nearby pillar, cracking it a bit. Then landing in front of him, was none other than Soren, as he was equally furious, as he muttered, "You leave my older brother alone...you bully." with a spat on the word 'bully'.

"Soren..." Kludd whispered, as his heart was now going for another loop as it was being torn in two once more. Then, he heard Nix sputtering a bit, as he tried to get back up, but then Kludd pinned him to the pillar, as he grabbed the sword Nix dropped, and held it to his face.

The grass owl gave an evil smirk as blood leaked a bit from his beak, as he taunted, "Oh, even more irony, your younger brother having to come save you. You are more pathetic than I thought."

Kludd was deeply angered by this insult, as he taunted back, "Don't forget who holds the sword now..."

The Guardian Barn Owl then looked at Kludd, and pleaded, "Kludd, don't. He's not worth it."

Much to Soren's surprise, Kludd heeded his advice, as he then said, "You're right, brother, Nix is not worth it, and he will _never_ be worth it," as he turned away.

This shocked and angered Nix as he then screeched, "Not worth it? It is you that isn't worth a..." Before Nix could finished, Kludd spinned around while swinging his right wing into the grass owl's face hard, knocking him out and to the ground.

"Like I said...not worth it." Kludd darkly smirked, as he returned to Soren's side, then he heard flapping as Nyra and the others were behind him.

"I got to say, lad, that was exemplary." Ezylryb smirked.

"Lyze is right, you have proven yourself that you are superior to that traitor, my king." Nyra complimented as she gave him a loving smile.

The scarred Barn Owl remained silent as he then looked at Soren, who was still panting. His mind was in major turmoil, and know not what to think anymore...however there were no more time for such thoughts, as he said, "Yes, but there is one more thing left to take care of..."

Everyone nodded as they turned towards the door, and with a deep exhale, all of them started towards them, however, as they approached the said doors, Kludd noticed the unconscious bodies of the cousins, and asked, "What did you guys do to them?"

"Well...nothing." Nyra nonchalantly said.

**Flashback starts**

_A few minutes earlier..._

It was true, while Kludd was having his face-off against Nix, Jatt and Jutt refused to let them past, however, Nyra was giving them a fierce glare, and after her threat of ripping their tongues out and shoving one's head up the other's keister (**if you know what I mean**), the Long-Eared Owl cousins exchanged frightened looks, and rarely enough, they had somewhat of a telepathic conversation.

"_Oh boy, we really made her mad._" Jatt thought as he started at the angry female.

"_What do we do? You know what she does to owls that tick her off?_" Jutt replied, very afraid.

"_Of course, I know what she does to them! I guess the only way to escape her wrath is to do what we normally do in a situation like this._" Jatt mentally explained.

"_You mean?_" Jutt asked, catching on what he's suggesting.

"_Yep, the good ol' 'put our heads together' gimmick_" Jatt inwardly smiled.

Then, without waiting, the two owls gripped each other and swung their heads into each other, knocking each other out, confusing the rest of them.

However, Nyra smirked as she said, "I knew they would do that."

"Really?" Gylfie asked, still shocked by what the cousins did.

"Yes, whenever they know that they angered me or Metalbeak, they weasel their way out by simply knocking themselves out...literally." Nyra explained.

However, Soren looked out to the elite's training ground and saw Nix looming over Kludd, as he the screamed "KLUDD!" as he charged straight at the two fighting owls, as it was his turn to help his brother out...

**Flashback end**

Soon, the band stood before the towering doors that led into the king's chamber where Skarmoris was laying in wait, and to say the least, it prompted a stirring in all of their gizzards, including Kludd and Nyra. Everyone gave each other a look of uncertainty, as everything they had went through, battling serpents, brawling against perverted hawks, and navigating a ominous fog bank within the Labyrinth Peaks, had all came down to this moment...

"_This is where it ends._" Kludd thought as he gave a nod to Twilight and Digger, as the two owls grabbed hold of the door's handles and pull it open and the band was greeted with a very strong breeze, as the band slowly step forth into the heart of all that is evil...

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**A/N: Okay, that is how you end a chapter, right before coming face to face with the ultimate enemy...Anyway, I hope this chapter was good, because I felt at parts that it could have been better. No matter, as I followed up on LaRoche and Pip, as well as the other owls in Ga'Hoole (Don't worry, your 'un'favorite owl is still kicking). I also brought Harris and Fatal back for a little bit, just to assure those who had liked Harris and Fatal that they are still alive (although Harris is now smushed). However, the main part of this chapter ought to be the confrontation between Kludd and Nix, as I had a lot of inspiration that came into this scene. It turns out that Nix and Kludd aren't as different as you would think, they both thrive for acceptance, and had issues with their fathers (although Nix's is more severe). Now for the next chapter, we will see the backstory of Skarmoris, and I would like you guys to guess who he is, although a few of you readers probably already had. So...READ AND REVIEW!**

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated.**_


	18. One's Dissension Into Darkness

**A/N: Hey guys, I'm back after nearly three weeks of writing this chapter, and I am sorry to keep you waiting. All I hope is to say this...you guys had been waiting chapters and chapters for this; it is now time…to reveal the unknown backstory of our villain Skarmoris! It is time, for part two of the ultimate finale!**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, I only wish I did, for I would without hesitation make a sequel.**

**I do not own Falling in the Black or Skillet.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl.**

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Chapter Eighteen: One's Dissension into Darkness

_"Falling in the black, slipping through the cracks, falling to the depths, can I ever go back? Dreaming of the way it used to be, can you hear me?"_

-a verse from Falling in the Black by Skillet

(**Cue Ganondorf's theme from Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess**)

Our heroes made their way into the newly opened chamber, as a feeling of glaux awful dread spread through the owls. They knew that this was where they would put an end to all this madness, or perish while trying...

To say the least, everyone was feeling nervous, Twilight, usually the brave and bold Great Gray Owl he was, his heart was palpitating as he quickly look left and right. Gylfie, after nearly falling to her death, was very skittish as she had to summon her courage everytime to take a step forward. Digger, whose level of bravery was caught inbetween his friend and his love, looked on with fear, and as much as he wanted to crack a joke to relieve the tension, it would be really bad timing.

Ezylryb even was feeling frightened, although he would never show it, as over twenty years of being a Guardian, he had learned not to let others know that you are frightened, but it didn't change the fact that he was scared, in fact, he was as scared as he was the night of the Battle of the Ice Claws, after he had scarred Metalbeak, when he was being stared down by two very angry Pure Ones. The irony in all of this was that he was in company of one of them...

Nyra tried to keep a straight and serious face, as she refused to show any weakness in front of the other owls, but on the inside, she was horrified. The chamber they were in, the chamber of the king, was the moment she had witness firsthand the new dark side of her mate Surtr. She had no idea whatsoever what Skarmoris was truly capable of, but judging from his cold silver eyes and the number of owls he slain, he was a force to be reckoned with...however, just as she thought of those silver eyes, she felt...a bit of familiarity with him, as it reminded him of someone she once knew. She shook the thought, as she stole a glance at her love Kludd, as he shown no emotion whatsoever. She sighed, how could he be so calm? He's either trying to keep strong for her...or, as Nyra then fearfully thought, he had lost all touch with his emotions much like Surtr had. She shook that thought as well as she continued onward.

Soren was just as concerned with Kludd, as he eyed the sword that Kludd had in his grasp. The dream he had of Kludd executing him was still fresh in his mind, and the sword his brother had looked exactly like the one in his dream, prompting him to shudder. However, the shuddering was about to get worse, as Soren looked at the chamber they were entering and choked down a gasp, the room they were in looked exactly like it did in his dream, with columns lacing the round abode, and flags of Pure Ones hanging off the rafters, and even some lit lamps were hung. "_No…glaux, no…it can't be..._" He fearfully thought, as he struggled to keep his shock hidden from the others.

Kludd looked onwards with sheer anger as he clutched the sword he took from Nix tightly, as grateful as he was for Soren saving him, it only sealed his resolve in finishing him even more; after he kill the owl that stole his kingdom, weed out the disloyal ones within his army, and recuperate, that would be his main objective. That is all that Kludd had left to fight for, as Nyra and Soren made it obvious that they feared him as a monster. It was now just him and Skarmoris...

As the band made their way to the middle of the room, they looked towards the other end, where a figure was standing atop an iron perch, much like the one back in St. Aegolius, as he faced the sea. The Guardians looked at each other with fear and uncertainty, while Kludd and Nyra look on with stern distaste, as Kludd was about to take a step before the doors to the chamber slammed shut, surprising the band.

Then, a sinister chuckle was heard, as the figure perched then turned around, to reveal the cold dark silver eyes and deep brown frame of Skarmoris, as he said, "Well, Kludd, it is so nice of you of have finally come here...I gotta say, you took your sweet time getting here."

"Skarmoris..." Kludd merely stated, as everyone stare at him with a bit of anger, "I would say it is a _pleasure _to see you," Kludd said with an evil smirk, "but in all reality, I would prefer to see you in pieces." He finished with a snarl, shocking everyone.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl laughed at this, "Oh, how I miss your petty threats," he then looked at Nyra, "As well as you, Nyra, nice to see that you haven't lost your radiance given with what had happened."

"Save it, Skarmoris, all of us had come here to stop you!" Nyra declared with a scowl.

"All of you?" Skarmoris asked, as he then noticed the five owls, and under his mask, he smiled as he hopped of his perch and approached them, "Ah, the Guardians…the eyes of the night, the silence within the wind…the talons through the fire, and the shield that guards the innocent…whom defend the weak and vanquish the evil. This ought to be the first time I seen them without trying to kill them."

"So...you are the Skarmoris that I heard so much of?" Soren asked, a little curious about him.

"Indeed I am." The masked owl nodded, "And I take it that you are the one who slain Metalbeak a year ago. It is a wonder how an owlet such as yourself could have killed the king. It was either dumb luck on your part...or Metalbeak got too big for his britches."

"Don't you dare mock Metalbeak!" Kludd snarled, "He was twice the owl you would ever hope to be!"

"Oh, is that so?" The helmed Sulawesi Masked Owl asked, as he then took a deep look at Kludd, "Well, you tell me not to mock him, yet you are doing that by wearing his helm." This prompted a growl from Kludd, "In fact, you had cracked it, Nix's doing, no doubt."

Nyra quickly glanced at the helm when Skarmoris said that, and had indeed noticed a long crack within Kludd's helm to her dismay, and Kludd himself was dumbfounded by how Skarmoris had known how it was Nix, "How..." Kludd was about to ask, when Skarmoris merely chuckled.

"I knew that you and Nix had a past, and that he would want you to himself, and from what I heard outside, it sounds like I was correct. No matter how loyal one may be, they always let their personal issues come first." Skarmoris explained while shaking his head, "I am impressed however that you managed to take him down, despite the _Cannabis Regime_ effects."

This angered Kludd as he remembered that, however, Ezylryb then asked, "Why? How could you use such a sick, twisted method? Having your own kind killed and eaten by others, don't you realize what it does to them?"

The usurper king merely laughed, "What it does to them? I gave them the gift of might and speed, sure it isn't the road most traveled for most owls, but it helps perfects the strong-willed and strengthen the weak-willed ones, not to mention increasing their life longevity. All that I am guilty of is creating the ultimate army, an army that could match that of the first Pure Ones!"

"You are turning them into slaves! Metalbeak would never do that to his own men! I knew he wouldn't" Ezylryb snarled.

"Lyze, I never thought you would actually defend your rival, but honestly, who are you to tell me of what is right and wrong?" Skarmoris said in dark tone.

"What...what are you talking about?!" Ezylryb asked, astonished that he knew his real name.

"Yeah! Ezylryb is a hero!" Twilight spoke up.

"Hero?" Skarmoris repeated, "Oh, this old owl here is many things, but hero isn't one of them..." He muttered, as he began stepping towards them, "He scarred Metalbeak for life! He humiliated him! He made him into the very owl he had become!" He screeched, as he then began panting, "And you, Lyze, took every damn pleasure in it!"

"I did not!" Ezylryb screamed back, surprising Nyra and Kludd, "Ever since that day, I had hated myself for what I did to him, I wished that day had ended differently for both of us, and I wish I could take it back, but never...never had I ever taken joy in what I did to him. This talon..." The Screech Owl held up his artificial talon, "Is an everyday reminder of what I did to him, and I wished I would have resolved things with him before he died."

Nyra was shocked by this, never had she thought that the owl that wounded her mate would actually feel sorry for what he did. Any hate she held towards him was now replaced with empathy, a feeling that she found funny, she had never thought that she could actually forgive him for such thing. "_So much for unforgivable..._" She quipped in her head.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl then laughed in hysterics, "Oh please. You're feeling guilt? You Guardians are all alike, you act like you are fighting for a higher cause, but in the end, you Lyze, and all other Guardians are all the same."

However, Nyra took a step forward in anger, "His name is Ezylryb!" surprising everyone else, "You have no right to make him feel guilty, he is a good owl, he fought for what was right, like Metalbeak did all those years ago!"

"You are right, Nyra," Skarmoris sinisterly sniggered, "He wasn't always the despicable owl he was...there was a time that I truly respected him, but then, he became the pathetic empty shell that you Guardians did the pleasure of eradicating.

This angered Nyra, "Shut up! Who are you to insult him?! You probably didn't know him as long as I have! He was a good owl, and he was a great leader!"

However, Skarmoris simply closed up to her face, as he snarled, "I had known him way longer than you will ever have! Typical Nyra, blindly loyal to her mate to the glaux damn end,"

Nyra snarled, "How would you have known him longer? I have never once seen you in my life!"

Skarmoris then went silent for a moment, when he said, in a surprisingly calm voice, "Eh, are you sure you don't recognize me...Nyrae?"

The white Barn Owl's eyes went wide open when she heard that name, and the band and Kludd both said, "Nyrae?"

The queen began shaking her head, "Only two owls had known that name...Metalbeak...and..." then her heart stop and her blood froze, as she looked at the evil lord with disbelief, "No…no…it can't be..."

The Sulawesi Masked Owl smiled, "Let's try this again, without the mask." as he then gripped his mask with his wings and pull it off, and as soon as his wings and mask was down, Nyra's knees went weak.

Ezylryb was just as shocked by the lord's revelation, while the others were merely confused, and Kludd said, "What?"

Nyra ignored him as she saw Skarmoris's face, as deja vu hit her hard, as he looked so much like someone she once knew, and with the exception of the claw mark on his left cheek, she recognized the face and his silver eyes anywhere, as she whispered, "Maurice?" (**Dun-dun-dunnn!**)

The Sulawesi Masked Owl smirked as he said, "It had been a while, Nyra..."

The white Barn Owl walked towards him, still not believing, as she put her right wing up to his clawed cheek and whispered, "It really is you..."

Kludd was deeply confused as he snarled, "What's going on?! Who's this, Nyra?! How do you know him?!"

Ezylryb answered for her, "Maurice was a general within the Pure Ones' army aside Nyra, and was Metalbeak's apprentice, all I know is that he been within the Pure Ones ever since he was younger than you, lad."

"Oh, Lyze, I'm touched that you actually remembered me, here I thought I was completely forgotten." Maurice sniggered.

"Forgotten?" Nyra repeated, "I was heartbroken! Surtr told me you left the Pure Ones! I haven't seen beak or feather of you ever since!"

"Oh, that's what he told you?" Maurice asked in disbelief, before rolling his eyes, "Typical Surtr..."

"What are you talking about? Surtr had always told me everything!" Nyra defended, not believing that her best friend would say something like that about him.

However, before Maurice could answer, Kludd, listening to this, merely screeched, "Who the hagsmire is Surtr?!"

Maurice gave him a confused look and then gave Nyra a scolding look, "You never told them, Nyra?"

"Told us what?!" Kludd asked, "Nyra, what is he talking about?!"

"Why, you should know Kludd. You only had served him for a few days before your brother skewer him like a burnt shish-ka-bob," The Sulawesi Masked Owl hinted.

The scarred Barn Owl looked at him odd, before realizing whom he meant, "Wait, you saying that Surtr is...Metalbeak?"

Maurice deviously smirked, "That is exactly what I am saying. Surtr and Metalbeak…is the same owl."

This prompted a prolonged silence, as Kludd then looked at Nyra with an expression she wouldn't expect to see, a look of betrayal, giving Nyra a feeling of guilt. However, the tension broke when Digger asked, "Wait, Metalbeak had a name before Metalbeak?"

Maurice nodded, "Yes, my burrowing friend," This prompted a frown the owl, "Surtr was Metalbeak's birth name, however, ever since what Lyze did to him four years back, he abandoned the name. Surtr was a great owl compared to Metalbeak, kind and merciful..." This surprised Soren, Twilight, and Digger, as well as Kludd, as the Metalbeak he knew wasn't anything like that, "But even Surtr himself wasn't a saint." He said in a regretful tone.

"I don't understand, Maurice! What are you talking about? He was like a father to you!" Nyra stated, not understanding.

"Nyra, I believe you deserve to know the truths behind three lies your mate told, both told by Surtr and Metalbeak himself...as well as the truth about me..." Maurice said with a serious glare.

However, Kludd wouldn't hear it, "Wait a damn minute! You stole my kingdom, humiliated me, and sent me through Hagsmire! And you expect us to just listen to you? I am here to defeat you! Not listen to you spew your damn stories!" He screeched as he was about to raise his sword.

"I would recommend that you didn't do that, Kludd." Maurice sneered, "In case you had forgotten, I have an army of super-soldiers under my wingtip, one screech from me and they will all barge in here, and trust me, I don't trust the odds of seven owls against a hundred. And do you think that Nyra here would approve of you killing me?"

This immediately stopped Kludd in his track as he shared a quick glance with Nyra, who was giving him pleading eyes; he cursed inwardly as he lowered his sword and Maurice smiled, "I thought so."

"Oh, shut up and just tell us the damn secret already!" Kludd snarled.

"Patience, my friend..." Maurice said with a bit of sadistic amusement, "You all better get comfortable, because our story begins fourteen years ago..."

**Flashback starts**

(**Note: The sentences italized with 's at the beginning and end is Maurice narrating his past**)

_Fourteen years ago..._

'_I was nothing but a mere orphan, abandoned as a hatchling, my mother was dead, and never knew my father. All I remembered was being left at a branch of the 'Northern Crags' Hollow for Orphans'. For sixteen years of my life, I have lived there and already had I known that something was off about me. All the other owlets in the orphanage avoided me for some odd reasons; even the caretakers wouldn't look me in the eyes. Those sixteen years were the loneliest years of my life, and I felt that I was always going to be alone...till one day..._'

Young Maurice, sixteen years old, was sitting in his own personal hollow, just looking at the ceiling and let out a deep sigh, as he was just having one of those nights of pure solitude. He always wondered why people looked at him funny, he didn't have any deformity, wasn't a troublemaker, if anything, he was a good boy. However, it changed nothing, as owls always steered clear of him, never looking him in the eyes, not bothering to even say hello. In fact, come the day where owl couples coming in to adopt a child, no owl ever looked at him...but he felt that the mistress, the one they called Finny (**I bet you guys know her!**) played a part in it, although she denies it, he could tell that she was warning the parents about him and telling them to stay away. It was all an unfair game to him...

As he laid them, Maurice couldn't help but listening to the sounds of other owlets playing and talking, the wind blowing throughout the hollows, and…the voice of Finny? Normally, unless it was a special occasion, Finny never came to the quarters of the orphans, but there was her voice, as she was busy having somewhat of a heated conversation with someone, and it was getting louder.

The voice that belonged to Finny said (**voiced by Cloris Leachman, the one who plays Maw-Maw in Raising Hope**), "I don't understand, what makes you think that Maurice, a.k.a. 25-2, is the owl you are looking for?" Maurice rolled his eyes, according to her, it was easier to keep track of the owlets if they were labeled with numbers, when in reality, it is just even more complicated.

"Simple, Aunt Finny, I am looking for an owl with 'exceptional promise', and when I heard that you have a special child here, I thought I come and investigate." The other voice replied, a voice that the young Sulawesi Masked Owl didn't recognize (except that it belonged to a male). He rolled his eyes again at Finny's 'title'. The elderly snowy owl seen to it that everyone always call her by that, or, as she would say, 'suffer the consequences of your delinquent-influenced actions'. Needless to say, it had struck fear in all the children's hearts.

"But you don't understand! I sense something _really _wrong in my gizzard about that boy. Trust me; it is best that you look elsewhere!" Finny warned, as Maurice let out another deep sigh, typical Finny, always going on about him being cursed or something.

"Aunt Finny, I assure you, I am general of the Pure Ones army, if this boy is truly cursed, I am sure it is nothing I can't face." The male voice said, Maurice's eyes quickly went wide when he heard the name, 'Pure Ones', all he knew was that they were the defenders of the lands they were on, and they came every full moon to take all boys (and sometimes girls) that were eighteen away to their nesting ground, something like 'Le Pillar of Super-something'. However, he merely turned his back to the entrance as he was in no mood to talk with anyone.

But it mattered not, as he heard an 'ahem' behind him, and he looked behind him to find a Sooty Owl, much older than him, and equipped with what he believe were battle claws. Maurice didn't know what to say, but given what Finny had said to him (he figured that he was the owl that the headmistress was talking to), he was in no mood to talk to (and be berated by) him.

The Sooty Owl then introduced himself, "Maurice, I'm Surtr, I'm..."

"Afraid?" Maurice bitterly remarked, with a minor glare.

Surtr sighed as he then gave a glare back at Finny, who was just outside the hollow, and taking the hint, the snowy owl backed away, as he then said, "No."

"Well, you should be!" Maurice snarled, "I'm Maurice, Maurice the owl that strikes fear into everyone's hearts, the one that is cursed by the king of hagsfiends himself!" Then, with a sad, bitter voice, he turned away, "The owl...no one wants."

The general looked at the young lad with pity, from all that he had heard from the recruiters that had been sent here to bring owls back to their headquarters, everyone seemed to stay away from him, as if even looking at him would sign your death warrant, but what Surtr saw was just a young owl, who wanted to actually belong and be a part of something greater. With a firm but gentle voice, he said, "You are not cursed; you're just a boy...a boy meant for a bigger purpose than that."

Maurice slightly gasped when he said that, but was still apprehensive, as he turned around and asked, "What makes you so sure?"

However, Surtr looked at him straight in the eyes, not in an intimidating way, but in a very serious matter, and said, "Your eyes, lad; your eyes. Although no one else sees it, I see a spark; no…a small flame of determination and hope, a flame that doesn't deserve to be snuffed out, for all it needs is a gust of wind, a wind that would create a cataclysm, thus birthing a raging flare that would become the owl you are meant to be..." (**Wow, didn't think I was capable of making such a great quote!**)

Maurice stared at him, amazed by his words, as he then asked, "What about Aunt Finny?"

"Oh, that hag is nothing but a blowhart. She may not see you for who you are, but the only important thing is that someone does, and if you are willing, I _will_ be that someone and that is a promise." Surtr declared.

Maurice looked at him with shock as he asked, "Are you...adopting me?"

"Well, not like adopting, per se, more like becoming an apprentice...but say what you will." Surtr shrugged with a smile, "But only if you want to..."

The Sulawesi Masked Owl wasn't sure in what to say again, it was like something he had read in a book (something about two owls of an certain direction), at his darkest hours, someone had come to his need. He wanted to pinch himself to see if it was a dream, but judging by the firm grip of his wings on his shoulder, he could easily tell that it wasn't. Summoning up all his courage, he said with the greatest determination, "Yes, sir, I would be honored."

"Excellent." Surtr smirked, as he walked to his side and place a wing behind his back, as they began walking, "Then I guess we will be on our way." he said, but then he thought of something, "Say, you do know how to fly, don't you?"

"Well, not exactly, I am just sixteen, sir." Maurice admitted.

Surtr slightly kicked himself for overlooking that detail, but he shook it off as he said, "No matter, there is no time like the present..." with a smile, as the two owls left the hollow, as they both went off to start a new chapter in their life.

**Flashback ends**

"That day I met him and became a Pure One was the best moment of my life, and for once, I felt like I finally belong...and it got better when I met you, Nyra." Maurice said, prompting a rolling of eyes from Kludd, a slight 'ah' from Gylfie, a look of sympathy from Soren and the others, and…a blank expression from Nyra.

**Flashback starts**

_Seven years ago..._

'_The day when I first met you, Nyra, I must admit, I was flabbergasted to meet another female, as the only female I had known was Aunt Finny, as she always segregated boys and girls for obvious reasons, but after awhile, I became so infatuated, especially when you didn't fear me, much like Surtr did when I met him. I had never given thoughts to the concept of infatuation, but hagsmire, I was willing to give it a try...unfortunately, I was not the only owl to be influenced by your charms, as Surtr, who also never gave much thoughts about love, and before I knew it, I was infatuated with the same owl as the one was like a father to me was. But I felt that I had no chance compared to Surtr, especially that night._'

Maurice was waiting in the main hall of the Pillar of Supremacy, as he paced around nervously. It was only a few hours ago that he, Nyra, and Surtr were flying towards Beaks to meet Nyra's mother, and Maurice hoped to make a good impression on her as he cared a lot about the beautiful white Barn Owl, only to be horrified that her home was swept in a devastating rage of fire. In fear, Nyra headed smack dab into the middle of the forest fire, and Surtr ordered him to come back here to tell them, and here he was, just waiting, not knowing whether or not Surtr or Nyra were okay. Fortunately, his fears were finally laid to rest when he saw the familiar two bodies of his two friends flying in, but the moment they landed, and as soon as Maurice saw Nyra's face, he knew that something horrible had happen. Before he could question on what had happened, Surtr and Nyra both went up to their hollow without stopping for anyone. The owl was quite concerned for the two, but was slightly hurt that they wouldn't tell him what was wrong. So...he followed them back to the hollow...

As he walked into the hollow, he looked around to see neither Surtr nor Nyra, so he called, "Surtr? Nyra? Is anyone here?" Then he heard Nyra's voice, except it sounded sad. Then he heard Surtr's voice, as Maurice realized it was coming from Nyra's room, so he went and took a peek within the hollow to see a sight that nearly broke his heart: the sight of his crush and Surtr together...he wanted to say something, but Nyra beat him to it as she requested something from Surtr.

"Promise me that you will never leave…that you, Maurice, and I will always stay together, no matter what." Nyra said. Maurice was surprised by such a request, as he soon realized that something horrible had happened back in the forest, and much to his illusion, Surtr was just comforting her, so he had nothing to worry about...

Then Surtr replied to Nyra's request, "I promise..." as he fell asleep. Maurice slightly smiled as he realized it was getting late, as he returned to his room, and with a sigh, he went to sleep.

'_But as the year progressed, I noticed you and Surtr getting closer and closer, and then, I saw you two together…_'

_Six years ago…_

Maurice was returning to his hollow after he finished training the owls for today, and hoped to hear what Nyra thought of the special spot Surtr had probably showed her. He remembered seeing him go to that very spot during his first year in the middle of the day (**night to them**), and when Surtr found out, he made him swore not to tell anyone. It became no surprise when he decided to show Nyra, as she was one of the two sole owls (him included) that he trusted. However, he inwardly wished that he would be the one to show her, as it was an especially intimate spot, and given that Nyra was in heat, it would have been a perfect night for him…but then again, it was Surtr's secret to begin with.

Soon he was outside the hollow, as he let out a sigh, when all of the sudden, he heard moaning. Maurice immediately became concerned as he walked in, and whispered, "Is everything alright, guys?"

"I love you…" Said a feminine voice, one that he reckoned to be Nyra's voice, coming from Surtr's room.

"Nyra?" Maurice asked, as he headed towards Surtr's room, and summoning his courage.

As he looked in, he slightly gasped, as he saw the two most important owls in his life…together as they sleeping in each others' wings. If that didn't perturb him, the smell did. It was the same smell he had been sensing from Nyra all week, and from seeing her and his surrogate father together…it wasn't hard to put two and two together.

His chance at a relationship with her was now up in smoke, as he then backed away. He didn't believe it, Surtr was just going to show her his secret spot, never in his life had he expect them to actually…_mate_. Part of him wanted to be happy for him for finally finding happiness in his life (in a form of a beautiful owl, even) but…another part of him felt something…something real dark…was it jealously? He did not know, as these thoughts continued to roil in his head as he returned to his room in the hollow once more, like he did a year back. As soon as Maurice did return to his hollow, he thought of Surtr and Nyra being together, but instead of giving him a good feeling, it made him sick to his gizzard and made his mind burned with anger, and his thoughts started to twist when he felt himself clutching the Sooty Owl and… he balled up his right talon and punched the wall.

Unfortunately, due to his slightly less muscular build, his talon began aching as he tried to stifle a groan, clutching his hurt talon, as he realized what he just done. He was frightened as he looked at the crack in the wall made by his talon, how could he have thought such horrible thoughts about his commander, the one who took him in when no one else would? This question plagued Maurice as he lay down, as he knew that these thoughts were best not being thought at all, this was his surrogate father he was talking about, and he was happy that he had found love. Sure, he would have preferred it not being Nyra, the only female that didn't cower in fear from him, but that was life for you; it works in the strangest ways. He inwardly swore to himself that he wouldn't let such thoughts get the better of him, for their sake…and his.

'_And I did kept that promise, no matter how much it went against my gizzard, even on the day of your wedding…and it was hagsmire, knowing that the one you deeply cared about being with another owl, but if it meant your and Surtr's happiness, I was more than willing to comply._'

**Flashback ends**

"Then what happened?" Soren asked, himself intrigued with this owl's story.

"For the love of glaux, who cares?! Did you forget that this was the owl we set out to defeat?!" Kludd snarled, as he was growing more and more impatient, "All that I am getting is that he was a coward…and I despise cowards."

"Coward?" Maurice repeated, with a bit of anger in his voice, "If anyone was a coward, my wanna-be king, it was Metalbeak."

"SHUT UP! I DON'T CARE IF YOU WERE HIS DAMN APPRENTICE! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO INSULT HIM; HE WAS THE GREATEST OWL I'VE EVER KNOWN!" Kludd yelled.

"Oh, what do you know?! He couldn't even bother to tell Nyra why he was unable to gift her with a child!" Maurice rebutted.

"What?" Nyra asked, "What do you mean, unable to?"

"Ah, the first of his three lies. You may have thought that you were unable to conceive an egg because you and Surtr weren't having the best of luck, but what you didn't realize that the problem was none other than Surtr…

**Flashback starts**

'_It all started a few months after Surtr's coronation as king of the Pure Ones. I was fulfilling my duties as general back then, and I was too wondering why you hadn't had an egg yet. I wasn't keen on you two having an egg together, but I thought being uncle to your child would have been a great honor. However…_'

_Five years ago…_

The Sulawesi Masked Owl was busy walking down the corridors to the blacksmith to have his battle claws sharpened. He smirked as the soldiers that passed him gave him a salute; it gave Maurice pleasure that he had a bit of power at his wingtip. Despite losing the chance of being mated with Nyra, he was more than glad that he could still serve alongside them. However, as he thought of the two, he let out a sigh, for as they were getting closer together; his role was now becoming less of a good friend to that of a third wheel, especially when he heard that Surtr and Nyra were trying to have a child. Surely he wouldn't think of having a child especially when you are commander of one of the most ruthless army on Mother Earth, but on the other wing, it would give him great pleasure to be a influence in their child's life…

Then, he noticed Surtr walking by, looking like he had been punched in the gizzard. Not noticing the look, Maurice greeted him, "Hello, Surtr, how's things going?"

"Fine…just fine." Surtr blankly said, as he walked past him.

Not believing him, Maurice then walked in front of him, "Are you sure? You looked like someone died…did someone die?" He asked.

"No…it's…it's just …it's complicated." Surtr stammered to explain.

Maurice merely smiled, "Come on, milord, I'm your trusted general, you can trust me with anything, besides, I doubt it's that…"

"I can't impregnate my wife." Surtr stated simply.

"Say what now?" The general jumped in surprise, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, the doctor told me that my body had grown to a point of age where my...seeds...are infertile…" The Sooty Owl explained.

"So you are saying that no matter how much you try, you and Nyra…can't have a child together?" The Sulawesi Masked Owl asked, fearing that he knew the answer.

"That is correct." The king nodded, as he put his back against a nearby wall, and slid down it, "This entire kingdom is going to have no heirs when we're gone…"

"Now, Surtr, it isn't all that bad…" Maurice tried to reason.

"Do you have any idea how weak this makes me?!" Surtr suddenly yelled, "How humiliating knowing that you are the reason your wife will never have the chance of being a mother?!" He finished while panting, but he quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, Maurice, you didn't deserve that."

"It's alright, sir…does Nyra know?" The young owl asked.

"No…and I don't want her to know." Surtr said firmly.

"But, Surtr, you can't keep this from Nyra, she is your mate!" Maurice said matter-of-factly, not believing his words.

"Please, Maurice, I can't bear the shame of seeing her heartbroken. Promise me you won't tell her!" Surtr ordered.

"Surtr, I…" Maurice tried to explain,

"PROMISE ME!" Surtr pleaded, gripping his shoulders, while looking at him with begging eyes.

The young general was unsure of what to do, it went against his gizzard to lie to the female he secretly loved, but he owed his once-general for everything he had done for him, and the last thing he wanted was to hurt the man who watched over him for so long…

"I promise." Maurice said, with a slightly defeated sigh.

Surtr smiled as he gave a silent 'thank you' as he then placed his wing around Maurice and said, "Come on, let's go see Nyra," as the two went off. Despite how glad he made Surtr, Maurice couldn't help but frown at his master's dishonesty, as unbeknownst to himself, his mind began to twist once more…

**Flashback ends**

"He kept his infertility a secret from you for three years, and I only kept it out of respect for him…little did I realize that I had all but lost respect for him…especially with what happen a year after the Battle of the Ice Claws…

"What do you mean?" Nyra asked shocked by what her best friend had just told her, as her face then contorted into anger, "Why had you leave us? Why do you hate him so?" She demanded.

"Well, Nyra…the reason I left…can be credited to your damn mate." Maurice said with a dark glare.

**Flashback starts**

'_It was about a year after Surtr had become Metalbeak, when everything that I cherished was ripped away from me…all because I wanted to protect the one I cared about…_'

_Three years ago…_

Early the next night, the night after Surtr and Nyra's argument that resulted in the Sooty Owl hitting the Barn Owl, and the night after Maurice suggested running away together with her, Maurice was now standing within the throne room, as Surtr was facing the sea. The Sulawesi Masked Owl was unsure as to why he was here, all he knew was as soon as he woke up, a Pure One soldier came to him saying that Lord Metalbeak would like to have a word with him. He was unsure about what he could possibly want, but his gizzard, slightly tainted by his dark thoughts (again, without his knowing), made him think that it had something to do with Nyra. After her refusal to run away with him and swearing to stay with Metalbeak, he was more than disappointed, he was upset that she would be foolish enough to stay with someone who obviously didn't love her, but being the owl he was, he had no choice but to accept her wishes…but he swore that if Surtr ever hurt her again, he was more than willing to end him…sure, it scared him that he would do such a thing to the owl that took care of him, but over the years, ever since seeing him and Nyra after their…mating, something had begun forming in his mind…something dark, something that frightened him…yet felt so familiar.

He shook the thought when he then spoke up, "You wanted to see me, Lord Metalbeak?"

"Ah yes, Maurice, it is about what had occurred last night…" Metalbeak stated.

"You mean that little disagreement between you and Nyra? I heard all about it." Maurice shrugged.

"I am well aware of that…I am talking about what had transpired between Nyra…and you…" Surtr said with a suspicious glare.

"Me? What on earth are you talking about?" The young general asked, slightly nervous yet defensive.

"When I was taking a stroll in the halls after my and Nyra's 'talk', trying to clear my head, when I heard talking amongst the upper hollows hall." Surtr explained, "Normally, I wouldn't think much of it, but as I approach the source of the talking, there I found you comforting my mate…"

"She was upset." Maurice explained, "I was performing my duty as fellow general and friend to comfort her."

"I see…but there were a few exchanges of words that I heard that surprised me. Something about you and my mate running away, starting a new life, and such clichés." Surtr said as he moved his face close to his as his eyes turn to anger.

Knowing that he had been found out, but oddly not afraid, Maurice merely said with a glare, "I only spoke the truth…Surtr…"

Metalbeak snarled, "How dare you…do you realize what the punishment is for defying your king? Do you know the consequences of daring to steal my mate?"

"Mate?!" Maurice repeated as he let out a long laugh, "YOU DON'T DESERVE TO CALL HER THAT! I know what you did to her…how could you lay a wing upon the one you love?!" He screamed.

"She defied me! She called me a fool!" Metalbeak yelled, "I merely put her in her place."

"Did you now?" Maurice asked as he and Surtr began to circle each other, "Why you think she did such a thing? Because she was starting to realize what you had become?"

"Watch it, boy; I am more than capable of killing you…" The Sooty Owl threatened.

"What's wrong, am I making you uncomfortable?" Maurice darkly smirked, "Reminding you of your promise? Of the owl you used to be?" (**The** **Lorax reference!**)

"You be quiet! That owl is long gone! The owl here is the true King of the Pure Ones, and right now…you had angered him."

"Really? Are you really angry…or are you threatened?" Maurice said with a cocky smirk.

"What are you talking about?" The king glowered.

"Think about it, Surtr. I am only twenty-seven, at the top of my prime, and the strongest owl in your army…and you?" Maurice said with amusement, "I made a mistake, giving you that helmet. I should have known that it would make you into such a despicable owl."

Surtr evilly smirked, "I should be thanking you. This helm was what gave me the courage to finally embrace my true destiny…the capability of doing things that the old me wouldn't have the gizzard to do!"

"Exactly my point. The big owl with a crown of might…take that off, what are you?" Maurice asked.

"Mastermind, Warrior, Mate, King," Surtr answered with a superior smirk.

"I know owls with none of that worth ten of you." Maurice sneered (**Avengers reference!**), "But you and I both know that under that mask is nothing but an old and feeble, not to mention pathetic, waste of feathers."

Surtr then gave a vicious growl, "Well then, I wonder if you'll still be saying that…when I rip you into pieces!" He screamed as he took battle stance.

"Oh, it will be you that will be in pieces!" Maurice rebutted, as he too take battle stance.

Soon, there was a deadly silence as the king and the general stood at opposite ends, glaring at each other with equal hate. Only a minute passed when they both let out battle cries as they charged at each other. Maurice made the first move as he swung his claws at Metalbeak, only to be with his claws, as they began clashing metal. Maurice made the first hit as he swung his right wing into his face, and then he uppercut him. However, built to withstand punishment, he only took a step back as he swung both his wings outward blasting him back a bit, but Maurice had learnt quite a bit from his master, as he used this opportunity to slash his body with his claws, he managed to get a few cuts in before Surtr bashed him with his left wing, as he fell back. Metalbeak was about to stab him in the gizzard with his left claw before Maurice grabbed it with his right talon…

"I'm not letting you hurt Nyra again…not while I'm breathing." The Sulawesi Masked Owl snarled as he began twisting it the other way (**like in arm-wrestling or pulling back one's fingers**).

"Oh, you're not letting me. Oh, what a pity to waste such a strong, young, and confident Tyto. You could have done me proud…son…" Metalbeak smarmed, as he twisted it back.

"You no longer have the right to call me that…you're not my father, all you are is a pathetic loathsome creature…once I am through with you, Nyra and I will leave you to your lonely and pitiful existence…" Maurice muttered, staring at him with the greatest of all death glares.

Unbeknownst to him, Metalbeak's eyes flickered to that of sheer shame and hurt, but again, it flickered back when he said, "Well, you leave me no choice…" as he then swung his right talon up at Maurice's face, leaving a bleeding claw mark on Maurice's face as he fell back (letting go on the talon) and gripped his scarred cheek as he groaned in pain, as Metalbeak then gripped his neck and looked at him with a look of malice.

Maurice let out a pant, as he looked at the Sooty Owl with a glare, as he then smirked, "Go on…kill me. You will only prove me right…and think of what Nyra will think when she finds out that you took the only loved one she has left…" He finished as he closed his eyes, keeping his smile as he braced for death…but it never came…

Instead, he felt himself being brought to his feet quickly, as he stumbled. He opened his eyes to find Metalbeak looking at him with anger. Before Maurice could ask what was going on, the Sooty Owl said, "Go…"'

"What? What are…?" Maurice asked before being interrupted.

"I hereby banish you, Maurice, you had defied me, attempted to kill me, and attempted to steal my wife…all of these crimes are all punished with death…but being the merciful king I am, I give you five minutes to get out of my sight before I change my mind…so go…and never show your face around here ever again." He threatened.

Maurice's blood froze when he said that, the one he called father, the one he learned to call master, the only one who ever had faith in him…was exiling him. He began shaking his head, "No…I am not leaving here, not without Nyra!" He shouted.

"She is no longer your concern!" Surtr snarled, "Now GO! You now have four minutes, and trust me; you don't want to be around when those minutes are up…"

The young owl was shocked. He didn't know what to do, if he stayed, he would die, but if he left, that would mean leaving Nyra alone with the monster that stood before him. But his wings were tied…so with one last glare at the king, Maurice spread his wings as he flew out of the throne room, without ever looking back. Metalbeak watched the Sulawesi Masked Owl flew off, as his angered expression turned to that of sorrow, as he said in a low and sad voice, "I'm sorry…son…I am so sorry…" as he turned his back and left the room, as tonight, they move onwards to St. Aegolius.

**Flashback ends**

As soon as Maurice finished that particular memory, he was panting like crazy as his eyes swell with tears, showing that the memory he had wasn't a real fond one.

Nyra was more shocked however, as she refused to believe that her mate…the one she loved, would do such a thing to her best friend…in fact, she couldn't believe that Surtr _lied_ to her, even before being Metalbeak. However, there was still one question looming in her mind, one most particularly about the owl that stood in front of her…

"What happened after you left, Maurice? And more importantly, what had happen to you?" Nyra asked, as she pointed out Maurice's left wing and the two silver blade armlets on his talons.

Maurice's tears instantly vanished, as he then looked at the band with eyes that would scream insanity, "You want to know what happen, Nyrae? I tell you what happened…Destiny happened."

**Flashback starts**

'_After I was booted out of the Pure Ones, and forced out into the cruel harsh world, I was lost and had no sprinkin' idea what to do. Without a place to call home, and friends to rely on, I wandered the skies for days…which turned into weeks…which eventually turned into months…until one day, on my last legs…_'

_Two and a half years earlier…_

Within the northern mountains, there were no signs of life, which was usual for these parts. Despite the expansiveness of the mountains, there were no vegetation, no food, no water…therefore…no owls, an owl's version of a desert (although a desert actually had lifeform living in the sands, thus making it slightly a better place to be stranded in). With all of that explained, no one would be caught dead in this place…

Unfortunately, Maurice was. After being exiled, the Sulawesi Masked Owl was practically lost, due to the fact that he rarely left the Pillar for anything other than patrol, and without his knowing two months later, he had went into one of the most infamous' death traps in the Pure Ones' territory. Already depleted from not eating enough (his huntsman skills had left to be desired) and flying for nights on end, Maurice was already stumbling as he flew, and much to his dislike, he was only going to get more hungrier and tired, as he tried to look for something edible, or at least something to rest on. This luxury was not provided to him however.

The ex-general spent days and nights as he flew aimlessly through the mountains, as he looked for anything that would help him survive, but nothing came up, as his wings began to grow weaker and weaker…His desperateness grew as he began to panting as his beak was dry and his stomach was killing him from the inside, and his eyes were having trouble staying open, this combination of starvation, thirst, and sleeplessness began to have psychological effects on him, as he began to see mirages as they spoke words from the past.

As he flew, his mind make him saw Metalbeak, walking in mid-air as he said, "I hereby banish you, Maurice, you had defied me, attempted to kill me, and attempted to steal my wife…all of these crimes are all punished with death…but being the merciful king I am, I give you five minutes to get out of my sight before I change my mind…so go…and never show your face around here ever again…" the last word echoed as he dissipated into thin air.

Then he saw Nyra, as she said, "My mind is made up; I know that under all that hate that Surtr is still in there. I'm sorry…"

His eyes were next greeted with Solidor, the king of the North, "Oh, your soldiers broke a rule alright, the rule of _Glaux_…owls like you Pure Ones break his rule everyday, the rule of you _hagsfiends_ existing in our world! Owls like you should be smote off the face of mother Earth."

Then he was approached by Zephyr, their late king, "It is said that there is a time 'when a king is to step down and let another rise in his place'."

Maurice then thought to himself, "_Oh dear glaux…I'm losing it…this is how I am going to die?_"

However, there were still more to his hallucinations, as he was then approached by the owl he loved again, except when he first met her (he didn't see the red brow), "Well...if you want, I can be your friend." Maurice's heart stopped when he heard that, as tears struck his eyes remembering that day, as his heart was starting to slow down to a halt…

Just as his eyes were about to close, the Nyra he saw suddenly morphed into Surtr…the one that took him in five years ago…as he said his inspiring words… "Your eyes, lad; your eyes. Although no one else sees it, I see a spark; no…a small flame of determination and hope, a flame that doesn't deserve to be snuffed out, for all it needs is a gust of wind, a wind that would create a cataclysm, thus birthing a raging flare that would become the owl you are meant to be..."

With those words said, Maurice started to cry, as he remember those words, as he knew that he was going to die, as his breaths began to grow long and shaky, and he was losing altitude…this was it for him…after eleven years of having someone who cared about him (for the most part), he was going to perish…so, with one last look to the sky, he closed his eyes as he fell to his death…

In his unconsciousness, he felt a vision coming to his mind…

'_Maurice was falling without end, as he was in reality, as he braced his weakened body for impact…but it never came, confused, Maurice tried opening his eyes…as soon as he did, he was instantly confused. He felt himself lying on the ground, but what confused him were the two owls that were looming over him, one of them was a snowy owl, the other was…to his bewilderment, a pure black owl, with yellow eyes. But what truly shocked him was when he looked at his body, to find that it had regressed to that of a small owlet. Then the snowy owl asked, "You…what do you want from us?" The black owl said, with little indifference, "I am here to place this child in your care." The female owl then asked, "Why?" but the black owl merely said, "This child…he's weak…a worthless spawn that is better off dead…but since I am merciful, I am leaving him here…it is best that you don't tell him who I am or who I was…so I bid you adieu." As he suddenly flew off, Maurice wanted to know who he was, but all that came out was a childish peep as he was unable to talk. The snowy owl looked off to the mysterious owl, and she looked down at him, and Maurice instantly recognized her face as…_'

Maurice woke up with a start, before being stopped with a wing and a sweet elderly voice, "Easy there, lad…" The brown owl looked to his right to be surprised by none other than Finny, the headmistress of the orphanage he was once in, and he saw that he was within a hollow, and judging by everything was wood, he was no longer within the mountains.

"Aunt Finny?" Maurice asked, as he turned towards the elderly snowy owl, "Where am I? What's going on?"

"Oh, you are in my hollow within a forest just outside the mountains, I was returning home when I saw you falling, so I caught you, and brought you back here."

"I see." Maurice said, surprised that the one woman that he hate would save him, "Thank you…but why would you save me?"

"Well, I didn't want a guilty conscience." Finny explained, prompting another rolling of Maurice's eyes, "I was surprised though, you were malnourished and looked like hagsmire…what happen to you?"

"Oh…" Maurice said, as he then explained, "It is a long story…"

"Well, mind explaining it over dinner? I reckon that you are hungry…heck, I had to beakfeed you to keep you alive." Finny chuckled, as Maurice grimaced, but he agreed as the two went into the main room.

About an hour later, Maurice's hunger and thirst were satisfied as he finished off the last rat, as he finished explaining all that had happened over the eleven years he been with Surtr, and surprisingly, Finny hung on every word, as he at last said, "I tried to fight him…but in the end, he knocked me to the ground, and had me at his mercy…when he let me up and told to leave and never return. Without a choice, I left…and now…here am I, two months later."

Finny was silent for a moment, when she merely said, "Whoa."

"Whoa? I had just told you the greatest and the worst moments of my life…and all you can say is whoa?" Maurice asked a little shocked.

"Well, I had never heard such a elaborate yet sad story…a owl, in love with his master's mate, the master becoming such a foul beast, and in attempt to save that one mate, he was banished…one of the most tragic tales since Romeo and Juliet…" Finny said in theatrical persona.

"Well, fortunately, no one died." Maurice said, as he took a sip of tea, "But…now I have nowhere to go…all because I made that stupid helm…"

"Helm? You mean the one the King wears?" Finny asked.

"Yes…all I wanted to do was bring him back to the way he was, that battle changed him, and I thought I could restore his pride and dignity…but instead, I made a monster…" Maurice sighed, while shaking his head.

"I see…to tell you the truth, I'm not surprised…" Finny said with a grim expression.

"What are you talking about?" Maurice asked, as he felt something in his gizzard.

"Come on, dearie, you think even after all these years I haven't forgotten that you have bad vibes all around you?" Finny said with an amused look.

"WHAT?! Oh for the love of…you still hang onto your crack pot theories?" Maurice groaned in anger.

"They're not crack pot! I know there was somthing bad the moment he drop you off..." Finny shut her beak before saying the last word, prompting Maurice to stare at her funny.

"Who?" Maurice asked.

"No one important. Like another cup of tea?" Finny quickly answered, as she poured tea in Maurice's cup, but in her panic, she started missing the cup due to her shakiness.

"Aunt Finny...does this have something to do with my father?" Maurice questioned suspiciously, as he remembered his dream.

"No, oh no, this has nothing to do with that horrible, horrible, horrible...oh glaux damn it!" Finny snarled as she let out more information.

"Okay, Finny, tell me what you know!" Maurice demanded.

"Look, you don't want to know who he is...he was a horrible owl!" Aunt Finny said with fear, "Besides, he's dead, so it doesn't matter..."

Maurice was slightly annoyed by this, as he then clutched Finny's throat (something he wanted to do ever since he was a little boy), as he then threatened, "You look here, you damn hag, I have the right to know who my father was, and if you don't tell me, I will utilize the skills I had picked up as a Pure One, and END you. Do I make myself clear?"

Finny looked at the anger in his eyes, and for a moment, as if it was a trick of the light, she saw his eyes go red. Letting out a sigh, she said, "Alright, just calm down..." Maurice lets go of her throat, as she started panting, "Okay, just give me a moment..." as she walked off into her den for a moment. A minute later, Finny came out with a book in wing, and then drop it in front of him.

"What's this?" Maurice asked, "What does this have to do with my father?"

"Well, you want to know who he was, this book will reveal everything..." Finny said in a mystic voice, as she then blew the dust off the book, revealing the name...

"Two Brothers of the North?" The Sulawesi Masked Owl asked...

**Flashback ends**

"Two Brothers of the North?" Soren asked, instantly remembering the name, "You mean there's a book about it?"

Kludd was equally surprised, but he kept his anger, "What does that story have to do with anything?"

"Oh, you have no idea...that book told me everything I needed to know." Maurice darkly sniggered.

**Flashback starts**

"So...where I do look in this book?" Maurice asked, as he opened the book.

"Check the last couple pages..." Finny ordered, as she stepped back a bit, as if she knew what was coming...

Maurice did as she said, only to be shocked by a picture, as he gasped...it was a picture of a Sulawesi Masked Owl, all covered in black feathers, helmed with a black helm (much like that of Metalbeak's to his fear), and the most piercing yellow eyes he had ever seen before, he was the owl from his dream...

"My glaux…who is this owl?" The young owl asked, as looking at the owl gave him a dark yet familiar feeling...

"That, boy, is the most infamous and evil being to ever be alive...he had slaughtered many owls, he destroyed lives, his very name brought fear to the hearts of the strongest owls...his name was...**Deathbringer**…and…he's your **father**..."

**Flashback ends**

"WHAT?!" Soren and Kludd gasped.

Kludd continued, shaking his head, "No…it can't be...The Two Brothers of the North is nothing but a myth...the Deathbringer can't be real!"

"Oh, but he is...he is as real as you and me...although I can understand your surprise...I didn't believe it myself..." Maurice admitted darkly.

**Flashback starts**

(**Getting tired of these flashbacks?**)

Maurice dropped the book after hearing those three words from the headmistress, as he started shaking his head... "No…no...that can't be right...there's no way in hagsmire that I am the son of the greatest evil to ever fall upon these lands...that's just impossible!" He shouted in hysterics.

"I'm afraid it is, Maurice. Your father came to me one night, and just dropped you off...didn't even leave you a name..." Finny said with absolute.

"I don't understand...why didn't he want me?" The Sulawesi Masked Owl asked, his heart suddenly beating rapidly from the shock.

Finny sighed, "He said that you were weak...a worthless spawn better off dead...If it makes you feel any better, he wouldn't have been a good father."

It didn't as Maurice's eyes began to tear up, "Weak? No…this is not right...I can't be his son...I am not a monster!"

"You can say what you want, Maurice...but like it or not, you're his son...therefore, you are a monster in the making...don't you see what I was trying to do? I was trying to protect others from what you could become...and more importantly, you from what you would become. That's the cold truth...I'm sorry." Finny said with sad indifference.

With that, Maurice fell to his knees...he didn't cry, but he was upset...he was angry, but he didn't scream...he just stood there, with eyes wide open and shuddering, even though he wasn't cold. Finny took note of this, and let out another sad sigh as she said, "It's getting late...how about you sleep on it? Maybe we can find out where to go from here..."

The Sulawesi Masked Owl didn't say anything, but he responded by picking up the book and with Finny's help, he was guided back into the room he started in, as Finny said, "Okay, I'll have you sleep here for the night...the only thing I ask of you to not do is touch the armor at the head of the room. It's a rare artifact I found." as she gestured to the object at the end of a room, it was typical body armor for any normal owl, but what stood out was the helm, as it looked like a head of a mythical dragon from the far beyond (**Basically, the head of Giratina in origin forme**), but Maurice made no heed of it, as he laid down, with the book at his side.

After bidding him good night, Finny went off to her room, leaving the young ex-Pure One all to himself. The owl opened the book to the page with the picture of the Deathbringer, and gave one last long look at it.

"I'm not a monster...I'm not the Deathbringer...I'm not...I'm not..." Maurice said to himself, as he felt himself drifting off to sleep...but the nightmare was just beginning.

'_Darkness...that was all Maurice could see, nothing but a endless sea of blackness, the Sulawesi Masked Owl started to grow scared, as black tentacles spew out of the seemingly nothingness of a ground and tried to grab onto Maurice; he tries to break free as he tried to fly away, but the tendrils kept on coming, as more and more of them burst out of the ground, grabbing onto the young owl. He wanted to cry for help, but his beak was instantly covered, as he was now being pulled into the black. Before he went completely under, he heard a dark voice as it said, "Stop resisting...give into the darkness..._'

Maurice opens his eyes to find himself still in the eternally black void, but he was no longer being attacked by anything, but it didn't change the fact that he was still trapped in his own personal hagsmire. He tried screaming, "HEY! HELP! WHERE AM I?! WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!"

"Oh, would you stop with your incessant crying?" The voice spoke again. (**This voice is played by Chris Hemsworth, the one who played Thor in well, Thor, and the Avengers**)

The young owl stopped, as his heart froze. He slowly turned around to have his eyes greeted by a black owl, a Sulawesi Masked one like himself, with golden eyes that still pierced one's soul. Maurice wanted to scream, but he couldn't, as his heart was rapidly beating out of his chest...he was faced with the owl that he recently found out was his father...he was faced...with the Deathbringer.

"You..." Maurice whispered as he pointed his wing at him, with a glare.

"Now, is that anyway to talk to your father?" The black owl smirked with sadistic amusement.

Maurice didn't say anything as he let out a screech and charged at him, with claws readied. Unfortunately, the owl he was fighting was less than solid...as he went right through him.

The younger owl was horrified, as he looked behind him, as the Deathbringer said, "I must apologize, I am all but a figment of your dream..." Maurice stared at the ebony owl with anger, as he then let out a vicious caw, as he then lunged at him again, and began swinging his claws, but each attack just pass through him like mist...soon he became exhausted as he started panting. Deathbringer merely looked at him as he said, "Are you finished yet?"

"Shut UP!" Maurice screeched, as he backed away, "How dare you haunt my dreams? I have nothing to say to you!"

"Oh, but I do. I had been observing you for a while, my son..." Deathbringer said.

"Don't call me that! You abandoned me! Left me at an orphanage! Do you realize how much of a hagsmire my life has been for sixteen years?!" Maurice screamed with tears coming out, "I don't even want to know what you done to my mother!"

"She was just some random Barn Owl that I had a day of pleasure with. Then a few months later, she died shortly after you hatched...a sad story if you think about it." He answered, much to Maurice's dismay.

"I told you to shut up!" The Sulawesi Masked Owl growled, "You abandoned me because you thought I was weak…well, HOW'S THIS FOR SPRINKING WEAK?" He snarled as he swung his claw at him (despite knowing that it would go through), but to his shock, his talon was caught by his father's, which suddenly felt real, and it became more real, as it was being crushed by him.

"Maurice, Maurice, Maurice..." Deathbringer said while shaking his head, "So much anger...I guess you got it from my side of the family. But, I want you to ask yourself...am I really the true object of your anger? Or this there someone else deep within your mind whose blood that you hunger for even more?"

"What are you talking about?" Maurice asked through gritted beak, as he felt his talon being crushed.

"I believe you know what I am talking about...you only dreamt of his death for a couple years now...I believe his name was...Surtr?" He asked with amusement.

The ex-Pure Ones General's eyes went wide open when he said that name, and he felt a part of his gizzard burn from that name, as he asked, "How did you...?"

"Know? What you don't seem to understand, Maurice, is that I am not exactly your father, but rather the darkness within your soul that had taken shape of the one being you are familiar with." The black owl chuckled, "I am the being within you that knows all your fears...all your desires...everything that went on in your head ever since your beloved was taken from you was designed by me..." He admitted.

"Darkness? Now I know this isn't real." The owl with silver-eyes denied.

"Oh, Maurice, so naïve, this conversation is real, I am real…I had lived within you ever since you were hatched…it wasn't till that night I had finally blossomed…it was your hate and jealously that made me into the being I am today…" The dark being explained.

"What are you going on about?" Maurice demanded, "What in glaux's name do you want from me?"

"Simple, my son, I am here to help you achieve your birthright, your rightful place as the ruler of all owls…the king of all of mother Earth." Deathbringer said in a mystical voice.

"Birthright? You are out of your sprinking mind, I am not your son, and all you are is a bad memory…now if you excuse me…" Maurice said, as he managed to yank his talon out of his 'father's' talon, "I am going to wake up…" as he closed his eyes.

"Poor Maurice, you have no idea what a wonderful opportunity you are passing up on…" Deathbringer sneered. Maurice tried to ignore him as he tried to wake up, but then Deathbringer said, "I know a certain white Barn Owl that would love to be queen to a powerful king…"

The Sulawesi Masked Owl immediately opened his eyes when he heard him mention her, and demanded, "What do you know of Nyra?!"

"Did you honestly forget, Maurice, I am your darkness, I know everything that makes you tick, and this Nyra…I gotta said, she got beak (**Rio reference!**). I understand why you want her so bad…to feel her feathers, to wrap around her lavishing ton-"

"Okay, I loved her, so what?" Maurice interrupted, a little flustered.

"Well, Maurice, should you take me up on my offer, I can not only give you power and glory…but I can give you the owl who you so deeply desire to be your mate. That is a promise." The dark being smirked as he approached his 'son'.

Normally, the younger owl would have refused him and say he was bluffing, but something in the dark being's voice sounded like he spoke the truth…but he then asked, "What of Surtr? I wasn't strong enough to defeat him…how I am going to be able to rule _all_ of the owl kingdoms if I couldn't defeat him?"

"Simple, ye of little faith…how do you think I was so powerful back then? I possess secrets to unlimited power and immortality…secrets that will seal your destiny…destiny as the true king of the world…all you need to do is accept…" The being darkly chuckled, "…Unless you are still holding on to what your surrogate father say, something about your eyes and fire…" He added.

Maurice's eyes widen as he did remembered what Surtr said to him, that he was meant for a greater purpose…yet here he was, exiled, and forced away from the one he loved…all of it was caused by the one who said such things.

'_That when I had discovered the third and the greatest lie that my master had ever told…_'

Suddenly…he realized in that moment, that his whole life, ambitions, dreams, his entire DESTINY, was nothing but a lie…All that had been promised him…was nothing more than a web of made up fantasies, wrapped in a cover of realism. This was all there was to it? It was meaningless…

Well, _he_ would find meaning. _He_ would change his course, taking his destiny into his _OWN_ talons; rather than feeding from the lies of meaningless drabbles…it was _his_ turn to reshape history into that of another…_his _history. (**This quote was made by Synchronized Harmony, with a bit of my own touch**)

"If I were to accept…" Maurice said in a 'what if' tone, "What would I do? I'm afraid that I am nothing like you, father, wasn't that the reason you abandon me?"

"Oh, my boy, you are more like me than you can possibly imagine…and it shall be proven tonight…"

"What do you…?" Maurice asked before the Deathbringer suddenly dissipated into dark mist and without warning, it spirals forward into Maurice's chest, right where his heart lied, as it started to ache and tighten…prompting the young owl to fall to his knees, clutching it.

As the owl began to panic, a dark yet soothing voice whispered in his head, "_Stop resisting, boy, let your heart give in…and embrace the darkness…and you shall be reborn as the one who I can be proud to call son…your new name shall be…__**Skarmoris**__._"

With the name etched into his mind, the young owl then let out a powerful un-owl screech, as he started to laugh manically…

Maurice suddenly woke up with a scream, as he was now sweating bullets and now shuddering. The scream didn't go unnoticed, as a rather peeved Aunt Finny walked into the room, as she then snarled, "What in hagsmire is wrong with you?! Do you have any sprinking idea how late it is?!"

The young owl didn't answer, angering her more, "Well? Answer me, you hellion! Are you a bad omen and deaf…?" She stopped mid-sentence as she let out a horrid gasp. The snowy owl looked down to see that the owl she was yelling at…had stabbed her in the gizzard with his battle claw.

She looked back up at Maurice, who was now giving her a sadistic smile, as he then said in a different voice (**This is now the voice he had in the present, George Newbern**), "You have no idea…how long I wanted to do this to you."

Finny looked at him with utter horror, as Maurice retracted his claw, as the female stumbled back against the wall, as she bled out. As she began to grow cold and death was just in front of her, all she could do, as she slid down the wall, was say, "I…knew it," as she drew her last breath and fell limp. The snowy owl was now dead.

Maurice was no longer the shy and timid owl who was always feared because of the dark aura around him…now he was a new owl; an owl that was going to change history…his name was now Skarmoris."

As he looked at the dead body, he gave himself a smirk, but then he closed his eyes…and frowned as he said, "So I have to dirty my beak? The things I do for you, father…" as he approached the cold corpse, and with a deep exhale, he began to feast…and the corpse was soon reduced to nothing but a puddle of blood.

As soon as Maurice finished eating the remains of Finny, he couldn't help but feel a little sick to his gizzard…of course this was expected, no one could possibly be expected to handle eating one of your own species, but the sick feeling soon subsided, as he began to feel something in his body…he felt invigorated, as if he felt as strong as a couple of owls. Then that feeling came to him again, as he closed his eyes again…and soon, he turned around to face the rare piece of armor that stood at the front of the room, and approached it. He stared into the hollow eyes of the intricately designed helm, and with one fell swoop, he ripped the helm from the armor, and delicately, he placed it upon his head as it fitted him like a puzzle piece, and looked at himself within the reflection of the shined armor, and gave himself a smirk that would match that of a hagsfiend. This was the beginning of a new threat that would have the world hanging in the balance…

'_That day…was the day I took upon the name Skarmoris, and as soon as I embraced the darkness, the pieces began to fall into place, ever since that day, I had wandered the far reaches of the Pure Ones territory, making myself stronger by feeding on others due to the effect of Cannabis, but eventually, I had manage to accumulate two followers…_'

A Barn Owl was thrown against the wall of a cave, next to another owl, slightly smaller than him, who was struggling to get up. Groaning, he looked at the helmed owl with fear, as the Sulawesi Masked Owl looked at him with a look that wasn't amused.

"Really? You are the two that have been wreaking havoc upon the travel route around the Pure Ones territory? I cannot begin to say how disappointed I was with how much of a fight you had put up…" Skarmoris sneered.

The bigger Barn Owl winced as he thought that the mysterious owl that they were trying to rob, that managed to single-handily beat them both, was going to finish them off, but when nothing came, the Barn Owl opened his eyes, to be surprised by two dead corpses in front of them. Him and the other Barn Owl, who was getting up, looked at each other with confusion and horror as they looked back to Skarmoris.

"Well? If you two are going to be working for me…you will have to feed on what I feed. Surely that shouldn't be a problem…right, Biggs and Wedge?"

'_Forged two swords made out of the purest and finest silvers…_'

Within a forge, a good distance from St. Aegolius, a Boreal Owl blacksmith was nervously holding a cloth bundle as he approached the entrance of his forge, where Skarmoris was staring outside to the setting moon. With a skittish 'ahem', the brown owl turned around to see the blacksmith present the wrapped object to him. The masked owl unwrap the cloth to reveal two finely sharp-edged swords of the finest metal, shining in the moonlight, attached to armlets, as they were able to flip onto an owl's talons on a dime. Skarmoris picked the two crafted blades and turned around to have a good look at them…and then gave a nod, as the blacksmith was suddenly blindsided by his two cohorts as they feasted on the now screaming owl, as the silver eyes of the evil owl shone within the swords themselves.

'_And ultimately, I christened my left wing…to serve as a symbol of the owl that my father was…a symbol that would go to show how his son was able to best his father…both of them._'

Deep within the Poison Briar Bog, Skarmoris approached the black fluid with the utmost care, swords and helm shining within the pale moonlight, as he dipped his left wing into the black bog, and about a half hour later, he brought it out and raised it high into the air, as the wing was as black as the crags of the mountains and as black as his heart, twisted by the darkness that was now able to feed off his newfound greed and lust for power, as the owl smiled under his mask…he will never forgive his father (both of them) for how they had wronged him, but instead of spending his life hating them, he would do the next best thing to disgrace them…lead a army of his own on a conquest to take over all of the owl kingdoms, something that Deathbringer and now Surtr, as he had recently heard of his death by the talons of a Guardian, have never been able to achieve in their lifetime…

'_It was only a year later, after two years of training, scouting, and plainly improving myself, I finally came to St. Aegolius, the new found home of the Pure Ones, as I heard that a new king had taken reign…I have come there, not only to prove to Surtr how much of a fool he was to banish me all those years ago…_'

On a dead tree branch facing the hideout of the Pure Ones within St. Aegolius, Skarmoris, followed by his two now-mindless soldiers, Biggs and Wedge, landed, as the leader gave a dark chuckle, "There it is…St. Aegolius, it is about time I come home…" as he and the two flew off towards the base. This was the night he was waiting for, the night that he would finally take his rightful place as king of the Pure Ones, and then goes on to create an unstoppable army that would make even the Guardians quake in their feathers. He would finally exact his vengeance upon all of those who had wronged him in his lifetime…as well as confessing his love to the owl that he had put all of his effort into doing this for…

'_But to finally do something that I should have done a long time ago…_'

**Flashback ends**

"To say I love you…" Maurice said, as he was close to the end of his story, "Nyra, I did all of this for you, the Maurice I once was could have never been worthy of your love…but now…" The Sulawesi Masked Owl chuckled, "I am now a night before leading the once glorious army on a conquest that cannot be subdued…mere nights away from ruling all of the owl kingdoms…"

He took a deep exhale, "Nyra, I want you to rule beside me, together we can finally achieve what no other king had ever had in their pathetic time on Earth. I can give you everything that Surtr could have never given you…the happiness you oh so desperately deserved."

As soon as the Sulawesi Masked Owl finished his elaborate tale, deafening silence ensued, as the band stood shocked by the last bit of information he had just said.

Soren could still not comprehend that the Deathbringer, an owl that used to haunt his daymares, was actually real, as well as the fact that he was face to face with his descendant. Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight were shocked as well about there being truth behind the Two Brothers of The North…but the ones who were truly shocked where Ezylryb, Kludd, and Nyra.

Ezylryb was dumbfounded by the dream that Maurice had explained, of how his father came to him and had him embraced the darkness. He had no idea if that was for real or not, but all he knew was that the owl that was in front of him, was morally corrupted, and to his dismay, corrupted beyond the point of return.

Kludd, however, despite keeping a distant and loner demeanor, couldn't help but feel horrified by what a once Pure One had become. Under all his hate and anger at the owl, he felt fear; fear of what this owl was capable was, like the fear he had felt when they last clashed three nights earlier, as well as a familiar feeling that stirred at his gizzard when he had mentioned how both father figures in his life had betrayed him, reminding him of how hurt he was by his own father and how he wanted to make him hurt…was this feeling the feeling Maurice felt before he became Skarmoris? He did not know, and he definitely didn't know if he wanted to find out or not…He gave a glance at Nyra; despite how betrayed he felt by her, he didn't know if he could actually take it if Nyra accepted the owl's offer. There was only so much pain that he could actually take, and what Nyra could do would skyrocket past that breaking point.

Nyra, however, just stood there in silence, whether it was of complete shock, or her actually pondering Maurice's request, she just stood there. Out of everyone within the band, she was the only one who actually knew Maurice, in fact, out of anyone who had knew him at all, she was the only one left that did. The owl that stood in front of her was once her greatest friend and ally, the one who she had always trusted beside her mate, who was always there for her, but now…

"I can't…" Nyra said with absolute, in a fashion similar to the way she said it to him three years back, before Maurice's exile.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl's hopeful look immediately shattered as he heard those words again, he was close to becoming the new ruler of the entire owl race, he had slaughtered countless owls (not to mention cannibalized) to become strong enough and have the authority to command a powerful army (which he now possessed), all of them with strength and speed no less than that of angels and hagsfiends themselves…and she said no? All Maurice could say in that moment, as his stutter that he thought he had grown out of had returned, was this: "W-What? I-I don't understand. I just confessed my love to you; I told you I could give you the happiness you wanted…I just don't understand…"

Nyra sighed, as she knew that this was going to be hard to say, but with a serious expression, she explained, "Maurice…you were my friend, in fact, one of my closest, I had always cherished our friendship…but that all you were, a friend, and I don't feel anything more about you…"

"But…but…" Maurice stammered some more.

"Furthermore…my heart belongs to someone else now…" Nyra said, as she gave a glance at Kludd, who returned a somewhat surprised glance.

Maurice noticed the owl she was referring to, and merely shook his head, "You can't be serious…you chose HIM, some random kid who had only been in the Pure Ones for merely a year, over ME, your life-long friend, who was there beside you through the worst of all times?" He asked in a stupefied tone.

"The worst? This _kid_ was there for me when I had lost Metalbeak, he had been here with me ever since. Where were you? You had all the time in the world to come back!" Nyra rebutted angrily, "But you wasted all of it and for what?"

"For what…I done all of _this_ for you!" Maurice snarled back as he spread his wings to emphasize 'all of this', "I was the one who had brought all of the Pure Ones back to where it all began, I was the one that actually brought this pathetic army out from the ashes, I…"

"Was the one who never came back…" Nyra finished, with hurt eyes.

Maurice frowned, as he then angrily said, "Why are you upset with me? I am not the one who had lied to you all these years! I did you a great justice revealing to you what a monster Surtr truly was!"

"SILENCE!" Nyra screeched, effectively silencing Maurice and shocking the others, who (whether out of respect or fear) stood by as this conversation ensued, and with an exhale, she calmly said, "I was well aware of how Surtr…Metalbeak was a monster…Do I regret some of the things I have done because of him? Yes…but I committed those acts anyway…because in the end…he was still my mate…and I loved him, and I would have followed him down to the deepest reaches of Hagsmire…but you…" Nyra said, as she closed her eyes to trap any tears that had started to come up from within, but then open them to reveal eyes of anger and determination, "You think you have a right to say that you are better than him? The right to besmirch his name? To take the kingdom that Metalbeak had rightfully passed down to him? None of these rights are ones you possessed, because Maurice…if that is really you anymore…if anyone is the real monster in this room…it is you." She finished with her wing pointed at Maurice, who was shocked by what the one he loved said about him.

Soren was genuinely surprised by what the evil queen (if that what she was) said about her mate and herself. He had never once saw someone with such devotion to their mate, as well as a Pure One actually regretting their awful actions…if there were any shadow of a doubt that he could had her figured wrong…her words just then blown it all away.

Ezylryb on the other talon gave a hidden smirk, as well as Gylfie. Although Gylfie didn't reveal that she had known Metalbeak's name, Ezylryb could easily tell, as her reaction matched his when Maurice mentioned Surtr. Either way, they were both proud of the white Barn Owl, and somehow…they both felt that Surtr, glaux bless his soul, was proud of her as well.

Digger and Twilight, although they had the least grasp on what was going on, they couldn't help but smile at her inspiring speech. It prompted Twilight to whisper, "Never knew she could be such a poet."

However, Kludd's face drooped as he heard the speech, it was inspiring and it gave him pleasure that it put Maurice in his place, but what she said, about how great of an owl Surtr was, and how despite a monster Metalbeak was, she loved him…but as far as anyone was concerned, he was not him…

The Sulawesi Masked Owl was shocked…not to mentioned hurt. After all of his hard work…after giving his heart to her…and she just crushed it into measly little pieces…and to top it off…she called _him_ a monster…the very same name he called Surtr three years back…he asked, weakly, "Is that…your choice? Is that what you had chosen?" hoping that Nyra would say that she was messing with him, but he held no breath, as in the time he knew the beautiful owl, she never kid.

"Yes…that is my final answer…" Nyra answered, "I made a promise to my mate that his legacy would live on, and if that means having to put down a once good friend, so be it."

"I see…" Maurice said, as his hurt expression turned to that of malice and anger, as he grabbed his helm and said, "If you are not with me…" as he placed it upon his head once more, "Then you are against me." With that, he had now reverted back to his present ego, Skarmoris.

"Fine with me," Kludd said, shaking away all the troubling thoughts in his mind away, as he raised his sword once more at Skarmoris, "I was about ready to end you if this meaningless chatter didn't stop. Now we can finally settle this."

"Ah yes, this entire matter of me kicking you off the throne, almost forgot about it to tell you the truth. But now, I am going to finish what I started three nights earlier, and this time, there will not be any help of the supernatural kind to save you." Skarmoris smirked, as he bitterly remembered that screech…

Before Soren could ask him about what he just said, Kludd merely laughed at him, "Oh please, I don't need that old coot's help, because from where I'm standing, there are seven of us and only one you…to say the least, I am not liking your odds."

"I wouldn't be so sure…Biggs, Wedge, seize them." He ordered.

Then, within a flash second, before Kludd and Nyra could react, as well as any one else, two owls, as if out of nowhere, flew into the room, and in the split second, they tackled Ezylryb, Twilight, Digger, and Gylfie while Soren quickly dodged the attacks, but it didn't change the fact that four of his friends were now pinned to the grounds by Skarmoris's soldiers. Soren, Kludd, and Nyra gave a shocked look at Skarmoris as he let out a chuckle.

"Come on, you actually think I would leave myself unguarded? Damn, it is still a mystery how Guardians could pose such a problem for us Pure Ones." The usurper king muttered.

Soren's expression turned to a glare, "Well, Guardians are noble and just warriors, unlike you pitiful cowards! You let them go or I swear to glaux…"

"Or what? You going to go red-eyes on me like your brother and Nyra? You and I both know that you are uncapable of doing so, being the 'noble' owl you are." This prompted a tense glare from Soren, "I just never understand why you are friends to these lower species, all they are to us is a stain on the once-glorifed race of owls known as Tyto, haven't you learned that _our _species is above all others?" Maurice asked as he gave a sadistic look down at the pinned owls, as Ezylryb returned with a hateful glare.

"You don't understand." Soren rebutted, "It doesn't matter how different we are, where we come from, who our ancestors were, it doesn't even matter if we are Guardians or Pure Ones, it will never change the fact that we are all owls of a feather, there is no superior or inferior species, all that matters in the end that we are all equal…" Soren stated with absolute (**Wow, another good quote if I say so myself**).

Skarmoris merely gave a laugh as he said, "Oh, you are so naïve. You think that your beliefs are far greater than that of the Pure Ones? Do you ever stop to think that we are actually doing the broken a favor by putting them out of their misery, so they don't have to live their lives suffering? That we deserve to roll over for the others because they're weak? One thing you need to learn, boy…this is a dog eat dog world, only the strongest survive in this world." (**This ought to make some you guys think, am I right?**)

"I don't know what to think of their beliefs." Soren said, as he gave a glance at Kludd and Nyra, who were looking at the Sulawesi Masked Owl with anger, "But this is what I had grown to believe, that this world was created for everyone, good or bad, Tyto or non-Tyto…"

"Is that so?" Maurice questioned, "We just see how this 'belief' will play out once I rule this world…"

"So you will rule the world…" Ezylryb snarled, as Biggs and Wedge lifted the four owls to their feets (Twilight and Digger were in Biggs's grasp while Ezylryb and Gylfie were in Wedge's), while holding each of their wings behind their backs with each wing of their own, "How will that make you any better than the many kings before you? Ruling over the weak…so far, your plan sounds no different from Metalbeak's."

"Lyze, you old fool," Skarmoris chortled, "What makes you think that the weak will have any part in the new world order?"

"What are you talking about?" Gylfie asked, not getting it, while wincing from the tightness of Wedge's talons.

"Yeah, blaggards like you always went on triumphing over the weak and all that noise." Twilight stated.

Digger nodded. "Twilight's right, it's not like you can just get rid of all the other species of owls…"

"Oh, that where I beg to differ…" Skarmoris smirked, as he looked at the Burrowing Owl.

"What are you saying?" Nyra asked, as the Sulawesi Masked Owl returned his gaze to the Barn Owl, as she felt her gizzard tingling…

The Sulawesi Masked Owl gave a evil smirk (although it couldn't be seen), as he explained, "Our ancestors, the first Pure Ones, when they were first formed, they held little regards for all other owls not of Tyto blood, as one of them once said, 'Who needs them'. What I am going to do is finally cleanse this world of all the filth and purify it into a perfect world…"

"No…" Soren shook his head, as his expression turned to that of horror, as well as the other Guardians, as well as Nyra, and Kludd, who was also at lost of words by what he was saying. "You can't be serious…"

"Oh, but I am, Soren…" Skarmoris smirked, "As soon as I finish the Guardians, me and my owls will spread out all over the world, killing every man, women, and child that is not of Tyto blood, as well as weeding out all the Tytos of the weaker mind…in the end, as it was in the beginning, there will only be Tytos, and we will rule over all for all eternity!" Maurice finished as his eyes turn to that of insanity.

"YOU'RE MAD!" Ezylryb snarled, as he couldn't comprehend of what he was planning to do, "What you are suggesting is massive genocide! Please, whatever your demented mind is telling you, it's wrong! No one, no one can possibly be capable of such evil!"

"But, Lyze…this demented mind was what made me into the owl that stood before you. All my life, I always knew I was destined for greatness, for glory, and now, I will finally have it, and I shall give this wretched world the king it truly deserves!" The evil king bellowed. (**Snow White and the Huntsman reference!**)

Soren's blood froze when he heard him say how he was destined for great things, as it reminded him of the owl that was next to him, as he gave a fearful glance to him.

Kludd, on the other hand, was now growing more angry, not only at Maurice's despicable plans, but with everything else that he had said. Everything that had been said by Soren, his love, Nix, and Skarmoris had welled up inside him, and whether it was courage or just plain cockiness, he merely laughed darkly, "Really? What gives you the slightest idea that you will win? I had came here for a reason, Skarmoris…I am here to take back what is rightfully mine, the destiny that belongs to me, and I am not going to stand down to some worthless sprink who is _sprink _out of his sprinking mind. I will tear you limb from sprinking limb, and spill your guts all over these floors!" He finished with a scream, as he was panting from the rage.

However, none of this had fazed the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as he shook his head, and said, "So much anger…I highly doubt for an owl of the Pure Ones that what I had said is what truly made you mad…let me ask you this… am I really the true object of your anger? Or this there someone else deep within your mind whose blood that you hunger for even more?"

As soon as Maurice's questions were uttered, Kludd immediately went mute, as he gripped his sword tighter and his angered expression tightened. Unfortunately, this proved the evil owl's point as he gave a devil's grin, as he continued, "A little birdie told me all about you. How you came from the Forest Kingdom of Tyto…how you were suddenly scooped by those two dults…how you manage to become king…but the most interesting thing I had learned about you is this deep resentment you hold for your brother…" Kludd remain silent, "But one would ask, why would there be such a fierce sibling rivalry?" Soren quickly looked at Kludd, despite how clear Kludd made that he wanted his head on a silver platter, he always wondered why his brother harbored so much hatred towards him, "I have a couple ideas as to why one brother would hate another…but I believe the true reason lies within the one whose attention a son always strived for…your father…"

But before Skarmoris could continue, the scarred Barn Owl immediately snarled, "SHUT UP! This doesn't concern him nor my brother, this fight is between you and me, NO ONE ELSE!"

"Really? Would you be willing to say that to his face?" Maurice asked.

This prompted a look of confusion from Kludd and Soren, as the Guardian Barn Owl asked, with a sick feeling in his gizzard returning for umpteenth time that night, "What are you talking about?"

"It's simple really, since you guys were taking your precious time coming here, I took the liberty of having my men bring an audience to pay witness to the day I finally rid this world of Metalbeak…for good…bring them in…" Maurice explained, as he gave a nod.

With that nod, the doors to the chamber opened, prompting everyone to look towards the entrance, as a group of familiar figures flew in, well three of them did, the others were within their talons. It was none other than Nix, slightly bruised up and wounded and donning a grim glare, as well as Jatt and Jutt, with a mirroring bump on their noggins, still slightly dazed, but what made Soren and Kludd's blood ran cold (and the others to stare in shock) were the beings within their talons…it was none other than their father Noctus, their mother Marella witin Jatt's grip, Mrs. Plithiver, their nursemaid with Jutt's grip, and in one of Nix's talons, was none other than their sister Eglantine…

"Ma…Da… Mrs. P... Eglantine?" Soren asked, his heart skipping a few beats, as it was both overwhelmingly glad to see them again, but awfully horrified that they were here…with a madman…

"Soren? Oh, glaux, it's you!" Marella gasped for joy, if she wasn't being held captive right now, she would embrace him right now.

"Son, thank the glaux, you're here!" Noctus said with equal joy.

"It is so good to see all of you!" Mrs. P said with a smile, but then Jutt accidentally gripped her tighter, prompting her to hiss, "Not so hard…you ruffian..." causing the Long Eared Owl to say 'sorry'.

"Sorey!" Eglantine cheered, but then Nix tightened his clutch on her, prompting to gasp in pain, as Nix gave a sadistic smirk to match that of Skarmoris.

"Now, now, little one, no need to get excited…" Nix said, as he gave a evil smirk at Kludd and Soren.

"You villain…" Ezylryb growled, appalled by what Maurice had done (and Nix's cold-heartedness), and deeply feared that there was a darker reason for all this…"

"What is the meaning of this?!" Soren demanded, expression turning to a fierce glare, "Why are they here?!"

"Why fiendishly simple, my king-slaying adversary…I believe that before I kill you and our wanna-be king of the Pure Ones that they deserve the right to know what actually happened…to their eldest son, Kludd." Skarmoris explained with a dark intent in his eyes (thus proving that proving Ezylryb's suspicion).

Both brothers' heart stopped at that moment…as Noctus, who was listening in on what Skarmoris said, asked, "What are you talking about? Kludd had been dead for a year now…what's going on?"

"Well, Soren? Tell them…tell them what really happened that night, the night Metalbeak died, tell them about how their son and your precious older brother came to become the new Metalbeak, how he came to become the newest despicable being of this world…" Skarmoris rhetorically asked, as he let out a malicious chuckle.

Nyra gaped at what he had done…he was doing this to torment them…to strike shame and guilt into their hearts…this was one of the most glaux awful thing that she had seen anyone done, and trust me, she had her share of 'glaux awful things.'

"No…you're lying!" Noctus yelled at the usurper king, "Soren would never lie to us! Kludd would never become the leader of the likes of you! I know he wouldn't!" This prompted Soren to turn his head in shame, causing Noctus's determined look to turn into that of confusion.

"Open your eyes, you fool! Think about it!" Skarmoris demanded as he then clutch Noctus's head and forced him to look at Kludd (to Noctus, he was Metalbeak), "Have you ever taken a good look at this new Metalbeak? Or did you just take your son's words for it and just didn't think about it? Look at this owl, and think of your son…see a resemblance?"

The elder Barn Owl was apprehensive as the evil owl clutched his head…but then, he looked at the new Metalbeak…when he first looked at him, he felt nothing, like he did when he first saw him a few nights back…but then a memory came to him as he remembered something he said to the Metalbeak.

"_I am entrusting you and that woman with my son's life, so don't you dare break that trust..._" He remembered himself saying to the Metalbeak before they left, but at that moment, he remembered something else, he was staring him directly into his eyes…there were that of dark brown, a color that reminded him…of none other than his eldest son…Kludd…

The father's heart stops for a moment, as he blink his eyes and his eyes turn to that of utter shock, as he whispered, "No…it can't be…"

"What? What is it, dear?" Marella asked her husband, concerned with how pale he just become.

"Love, look at him…he has his feathers…his eyes…" Noctus said without turning to her, completely despondent.

Marella wasn't sure what this had to do with Metalbeak, but the moment he said 'his', she immediately knew that he was referring to their son, so she quickly obeyed, as she turned her eyes toward the scarred Barn Owl, and instantly, she felt like someone pound her in the gizzard, as she started to see the similarities (she mentally kicked herself for have not seeing this sooner), as she gasped with tears welling in her eyes, "Impossible…it simply cannot be…"

Mrs. P saw the two adult owls' reactions as she herself looked at the owl they were looking at…although she had to squint her eyes (they weren't very good to begin with), she instantly recognized the barn owl as well, she thought that the Metalbeak they saw that night looked familiar, and now, her thoughts were proven correct… "Kludd? Dearie…is that you?" She asked innocently, her heart slightly jumping for joy.

Unfortunately, Soren and Kludd's reactions didn't mirror theirs, as Soren felt an overwhelming shame come over him, as his secret was moments from being revealed, the secret he had hoped to reveal when he had return triumphant…hopefully with his elder brother…but this…was not part of the plan.

Kludd on the other hand, was now backing away, as his heart started beating irregularly. Why was he feeling so afraid? This was the same family that chose Soren over him, the ones who always favored him, and he was actually giving a damn about what they thought of him? He then remembered what Soren had said to him a year back when he became Metalbeak, "_I haven't told them, you know. About what you have done. Because it would break their hearts. They'd be ashamed of you, Kludd…Kludd…Kludd…_" His name echoed in his mind, as he realized that the feeling that he was having…was **shame**. Soren had lied to them about him dying so that they would have a good memory of him, to spare them of the pain…the pain of who he was now…the one who tried to kill his own brother, the one who tried to moonblink his own sister…and now, they were going to know all that he done…he couldn't let that happen, he couldn't!

Skarmoris gave a dark laugh as he saw the fear in Kludd's eyes, as he then asked, "Well, Kludd, aren't you going to answer your family?"

Kludd shook his head as he tried saying, "I-I don't know what you are talking about! I never met these owls in my life! I am Metalbeak, king of the Pure Ones!" This prompted an even more shocked look from Noctus and Marella.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl gave another laugh as he then sighed, "Oh for the love of glaux, Kludd, you are still going on with that ruse?" as he then spread his wings and said, "How do you feel knowing that you betray your own family? You think that you can just hide yourself as a Pure Ones, like a coward? It's time for you to finally take off the mask…"

With that, Skarmoris immediately jumped into the air and swoop at Kludd instantaneously, as he clutched the helm of Metalbeak, as he tried to tear it off him, as Kludd tried to throw him off.

"KLUDD!" Soren and Nyra both screeched as they both prepared to attack, but before they could, Biggs and Wedge (after entrusting their prisoners to Jatt and Jutt) and Nix pinned Soren and Nyra respectively…

"Oh no, you don't, my queen, this is going to be one of greatest moments in my life, and I'm not going to let you ruin it." Nix sneered, as he gave an evil smirk to the queen, who was now staring in fear as her love struggled to get the usurper king off him.

"Get off of me!" Kludd screeched in pain, as he tried to shake him off, but the Sulawesi Masked Owl had a strong grip on his helm.

"No…Kludd, it is time for you to stop hiding and end this entire charade once and for ALL!" Skarmoris declared, as with all his strength within his talons, the mask, the one he had crafted for his late master, came off of the Barn Owl's head and with a strong talon downward as he landed, the helm, weakened by damage caused by the general a while back, broke into two, one of them flying towards the talons of Nyra as she stopped it.

The queen looked down in horror and sorrow as the only remaining memory of her deceased mate, was now broken in pieces, as her eyes welled up with tears, as she returned her gaze to the one who had once worn it…

Kludd was in complete shock, as he felt the helm ripped off him, as he looked at Skarmoris, who was looking down at him with a sense of sick pride and amusement, as he crumbled the piece of the mask he held into pieces…but then he looked at his family, as the one thing he wished hadn't happen to him did…

Digger, Twilight, and Gylfie gaped at what had occurred and they simply didn't believe what the Sulawesi Masked Owl had done to their comrade…and what he had done to the helm of his master…Ezylryb couldn't believe it either, as he looked in horror at desecration of his rival's memories was performed before his eyes as he stared appalled at Skarmoris…

"No…" Soren whispered, as he felt guilt-ridden with what had happened…this was the last thing that he would want to happen to his brother…but here he was, his crown destroyed and revealed to the his own family…

Noctus, Marella, and Mrs. P stood there shocked, as they saw Skarmoris forcefully unmasked the new Metalbeak, and as soon as Skarmoris jumped off of him, they quickly turn their gaze to the owl and could do nothing but gasped at what they had saw…

Eglantine, who had kept quiet this entire time out of fear of what the mean owl that had her in his clutch would do to her, but had listened intently to what the other mean owl, the one they called Skarmoris, had been saying about how the one wearing Metalbeak's helm was supposedly her big brother Kludd. Eglantine couldn't believe it, as far as she had known, Kludd was dead, because of the Pure Ones…but ever since she saw him that night, she couldn't help but feel a connection with him…she ignored it because she thought it was just her imagination, but when she saw Skarmoris attacked the new Metalbeak and took off his helm, she couldn't help but gasp when he looked at them…the left half of his face was horridly burned, possibly from a fire or something, but despite that disfiguring scar…she could recognize his face anywhere…but she still couldn't believe her eyes…

"Kludd?" The young barn owlet whispered…

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**A/N: …Whoa, I just keep on making longer chapters, do I? Well what is done is the entire backstory of how our villain Skarmoris came to be…first off by revealing that he is none other than Nyra's friend from the army, Maurice (For those who guessed right on who he was, you get a pot pie… Cartman: No people, this is my POT PIE! No people, BAD PEOPLE!...Er, I mean a cookie). To say the least, this chapter took me forever to finish, nearly a whole month, and I humbly apologize, as I have a few reasons why this took me forever. One, I had recently got Pokemon White 2 three days after posting the last chapter so I have been devoting my time to playing it, two, busy at school and home, and three, because I have a short attention span. I am sorry if this chapter is not up to par, as there were parts of this chapter that should have come more smoothly. I want to thank Synchronized harmony, Lydea Blaze, TearfulFriend18, and Vegeta12345 for their continued support as I worked hard on this chapter and I hope that I have captured the owls' characters good enough. If you thought this chapter was very dramatic, wait till the next chapter, as we see the ultimate conclusion of what will become of the two brothers' relationship...READ AND REVIEW! (Note: I hope you had got all the references including the hidden Legend of the Guardians quote and Avatar (James Cameron's) quote)...hey, since I had kept you guys waiting for so long, I think I will finish with a quote I had thought up.**

_"What makes a tyrant evil is not just who they are, it is the shadow they cast...the farther their shadow reach is proportional to the the darkness within their heart..."_

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated.**_


	19. The Angel Living In Your Heart

**A/N: Okay, chapter nineteen...I had intended on finishing and posting this on November 6th, which was election day, but I ran into a temporary writers' block, but the good news is…I had recently beated Pokemon White 2 (The final battle was epic…for me at least). So now that those two are out of the way, I should mention that I do now have a forum, called The OCs of Ga'Hoole and St. Aegolius and everywhere inbetween, so if you have an OC that you would like to share with others, that's the place you can go to. As for the chapter at hand, the tables have been turned on our heroes, as Skarmoris (aka Maurice) has them, along with Soren and Kludd's family, held captive, and to top it all off...Skarmoris had revealed our new Metalbeak to be Kludd (you guys knew that, but his parents didn't), and things are about to get very, very intense...I had a little bit of inspiration from Animation Universe 2005's story 'Escaping to Ga'Hoole' into making this chapter, so there will be a bit from that story. Part three of the end…here we go!**

**NOTE: I believe I made a mistake regarding Deathbringer's eye colors, as in chapter ten, I said he had blood red eyes, while in the last chapter, he had golden eyes. I believe you can say that he might be a hagsfiend as well (whose eyes can become red)**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole...if I did, this story would probably be its sequel.**

**I do not own Skin or Sixx: Am.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl.**

* * *

Chapter Nineteen: The Angel Living In Your Heart

_"Cause they don't even know you, all they see is scars, they don't see the angel living in your heart, let them find the real you buried deep within, let them know with all you've got...that you are not...your skin..."_

-a verse from Skin by Sixx: Am

Have you ever had a moment where you were in a terrible position, and you wish that you could just disappear? Well, that would be what was happening to Kludd. The owl had in only matters of nights lost his kingdom to an owl that had it out for his old master; was forced to turn to the Guardians on his knees, only to be forced to work with Soren and his friends; went through hagsmire (or something close to it); lost almost all of his dignity, learned that Nyra and Soren saw him as a monster...and now, his crown, the one that belong to the one owl he deeply respected, was now destroyed by the owl he had set out to exact his vengeance...and if that wasn't enough, he was revealed to the ones he abandoned long ago...his parents...his nursemaid...Eglantine...this was not how he wanted this night to go at all...

The owl couple was still gaped at the owl that stood before them. Neither of them couldn't believe their eyes, their son...their eldest son that they had thought had perished over a year ago in that awful battle was alive, a little worse for wear, but alive nonetheless...many questions ran through their minds as they tried to think of something to say to their son...but the one question that stuck in her mind was why Kludd was wearing Metalbeak's helm? Furthermore, why Soren lied to them about his death? Many more questions appeared after them, but those two still stuck in their head, as Marella was the first to speak...

"Kludd...is that you?" Marella asked, even though she knew the answer, but she wanted to hear his voice...

The scarred Barn Owl looked at his mother, and as much as he wanted to deny it, he was caught, exposed to them, and there was no way out. All he could do was muster the little remnant of dignity that he had remaining, as he got to his feet and with a quiet tone, he answered, "Yes, it's me..."

This prompted tears falling from Marella's eyes, as she couldn't help but cry for joy. Mrs. P was overjoyed as well, "I never thought we would ever see you again! You have no idea how much we missed you!" she cheered as tears also left her eyes.

It practically pounded Kludd repeatedly in the guts as she and Mrs. P looked at him with those teary eyes, as guilt struck his heart...as happy as he want to be that his ma and nursemaid was happy to see him again, there was still that part in his heart that was still apprehensive of them, these were the same people who chose Soren over him, and just those words didn't change that. His apprehension was concreted when he turned his eyes to his father, whose expression was shifting to shock to joy to complete confusion...but it eventually stopped on confusion as Noctus then spoke...

"I don't understand...how could you still be alive? Soren told me you were dead!" Noctus said in astonishment, but then it turned to anger, as he then turned to Soren, much to Kludd's surprise, "Soren, what's the meaning of this?! Why did you tell us he was dead when he had been alive all this sprinking time?!" He snarled.

"Da…this wasn't how I wanted you to find out..." Soren shamefully stated, as Noctus stared at him with anger.

"Oh? How did you want us to find out? After Kludd gets killed by the Guardians, not knowing that he was your brother?" Noctus asked, prompting Soren to droop his head in shame, "How could you be so cruel? How could you lie to your parents, the Guardians, not to mention Otulissa? Why?!"

"That's enough, Noctus!" Ezylryb ordered, not willing to hear a father berates his son, "The lad already felt guilty enough not telling you, in fact, he was going to tell you after we returned!"

"You knew?!" Noctus asked Lyze in even more shock, "And you kept it from me? You are a Guardian for crying out loud!" Prompting a somewhat guilty look from Ezylryb, as the adult Barn Owl then turned to Soren's friends being held captive in Jatt and Jutt's talons and wings, "I take it that you guys knew as well?" He demanded.

Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight looked at each other with uncertainty, as they tried to say something, "Well..." Digger began.

Gylfie continued, "You see..."

Twilight carried it on, "It just that..."

"Yes." All of them said with guilt-ridden face, as Noctus' angered face turned even darker.

"Noctus, dear, please, being mad at Soren isn't going to change anything." Marella pleaded, "All that matters is our son is alive!"

"Quite right, my barn owl friend," Skarmoris nodded as he approached the two, "But is it worth knowing that he's alive?"

"What are you talking about?" Noctus demanded.

"Isn't it obvious, didn't you see that Kludd was wearing Metalbeak's helm? That means only one thing…" The Sulawesi Masked Owl hinted.

Noctus's heart stop when he said that, as he asked, "Wait, are you telling me that the Metalbeak that had been leading the Pure Ones this whole year has been…?"

"Kludd? Yes, that is exactly what I am saying, although he isn't leader anymore, I made sure of that." Skarmoris admitted with sinister pride, prompting a hidden glare from Kludd.

"No…glaux no, Kludd, tell me it's not true!" Noctus pleaded, but Kludd remain silent, "Kludd? Please answer me, tell me you weren't…you're not…" he stammered, but the younger Barn Owl then let out a sigh.

"You want the truth, father? I tell you the truth…" Kludd muttered, as he then walked forward and with angry eyes, he seethed, "I…am…Metalbeak…"

"No…" Marella shook her head.

"This can't be true…you're lying!" Noctus denied, shaking his head.

"You can deny it all you want, da, but it's the truth!" Kludd snarled, "**I **was the one who pushed Soren off the branch that night! **I **was the one who got Grimble killed! **I **stayed behind with the Pure Ones when Soren and that Elf Owl escaped! **I **got Eglantine moon-blinked! **I **was the one who tried to kill my brother all damn year! All of it, it was all **me**!" Kludd finished with a screech, panting from his confession.

Noctus was speechless from what his eldest son just said, as his beak gaped, how…how could his own son betray them? More importantly, why would he try to kill his own brother?

"Now do you see why your son kept it a secret? All he wanted was to protect you and your wife from the pain of knowing what your son is…" Skarmoris chuckled, as he then whispered close to Noctus's earhole, "A monster…"

The adult barn owl shook his head to get Skarmoris away from his face, as he then looked at Soren with questioning eyes as he asked, "Soren…why?"

Soren, whose eyes were now slightly tearing up, then said, "I didn't want to hurt you and ma, I was hoping to tell you when I brought Kludd back to his senses and back home…I just wanted to bring things back to the way things were before this whole Guardians and Pure Ones thing started." This prompted another glare from Kludd who was appalled that he still thinks that he was brainwashed or something to that effect.

"Oh, isn't that touching, a young boy wanting to bring his family back together just so they can be happy again." Skarmoris mused, "It is always those kinds of things that make me want to yarp up a pellet." He finished with a spat. "But certainly, you must realize that your desire is nothing but an impossibility."

"What are you talking about?" Soren snarled, as he tried to struggle against his captor's talons.

"Think about it, Soren, even if by some sprinking miracle that you defeat me, it doesn't change the fact now that your parents know who their son is, it doesn't change the fact that the Guardians will want his head for threatening to kill their loved ones, for a matter of fact, what makes you think that your love will feel that you are brother to the same owl that almost killed her."

"How…how did you…?" Soren stammered.

"I have an extra set of eyes (**For those who are confused, he's referring to that scout in ch 7 and 12**), Soren, I know everything about you, them," He gestured to his friends, "and everyone else. Although I am impressed that you manage to make it here through all the 'dangerous parts' of the territory, I am afraid all of it was for naught." Skarmoris sneered.

Soren wanted to say otherwise, but given the situation he was in, he doubt that it would make any difference. He gave a look to Kludd, who was still in distraught after his confession and the breaking of his master's helm, as he looked down with shame, as he frowned at his own failure to protect him...Skarmoris, however noticed him as well.

"Oh, Kludd…" Skarmoris turned to the crestfallen owl in a mocking voice, "You shouldn't be sad, you should be happy to be reunited with your family, especially moments before your death…" He finished with a devilish grin, prompting a scowl from the scarred Barn Owl. Kludd never felt so defeated in his life, Metalbeak's helm was the only thing that made him felt respected and filled him with pride, but without that, all he now was an ugly-faced owl, overshadowed by his brother, who lost everything…

However, he heard his name…his actual name, "Kludd…"

Kludd looked up to see his father, Noctus, staring at him with a look of disappointment, making his heart wince in more pain.

"Why, Kludd?" Noctus demanded, "Why did you choose the Pure Ones over us? Why did you choose her?!" He pointed at Nyra, who couldn't help but wince under his glare, "How could you join them, after all those glaux-awful things they did to us?!

This prompted something to snap inside of Kludd's mind and heart, as all the anger within his gizzard from losing his kingdom, his dignity, his love, and his brother (he still didn't believe he cared about that) was suddenly released when he repeated, "Why? Why?! WHY?!" as his voice increased in tempo and anger, "OH MY GLAUX, YOU ARE SO GLAUX DAMN CLUELESS!" Noctus's look turned from disappointed to shocked, as in his experience of being his father, he never was this angry towards him, but this was just the beginning of Kludd's anger, as he snarled, "YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY I DID ALL THIS? HERE'S WHY!" As he suddenly balled up his free talon and smashed it into his brother's guts, causing him to keel over in pain.

"SOREN!" The Guardians and his family said in shock, as they didn't believe what the scarred barn owl just did.

"What are you doing, lad?!" Ezylryb demanded.

"Kludd, what is the meaning of this?!" Noctus questioned.

The scarred barn owl didn't answer, as he looked at Soren with unmatchable anger, as the said owl, while trying to ignore the newfound pain, could only say, "Kludd, I don't understand…I'm your…"

"SHUT UP!" Kludd shouted, shutting him up, "YOU ARE THE REASON MA AND DA ALWAYS FAVOR YOU!"

"What?" Soren asked, stupefied.

"What?" Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight repeated.

"What?" Nyra and Ezylryb also repeated.

"Huh?" Jatt and Jutt said, not understanding, as well as Nix, who was also confused.

"What?" Noctus, Marella, as well as Mrs. P, all said.

"Hmm, things just got a little more interesting." Skarmoris said to himself, as he gave a nod to Biggs and Wedge to bring Soren back up.

"What are you talking about?" Soren said, puzzled and still wincing from the pain.

"I BECAME METALBEAK BECAUSE OF YOU, BECAUSE YOU ARE MA AND DA'S FAVORITE CHILD!" Kludd screamed in his face with sheer anger.

"That's why?" Nyra asked a little shocked; she knew that Kludd hated Soren, but she never thought that the root of his hate would be...jealously…

"Knew it." Nix muttered, remembering his conversation with him the night Skarmoris came.

"What does Soren have anything to do with you becoming Metalbeak?" Noctus asked, mystified.

"EVERYTHING! FOR YEARS ON END, YOU HAVE ALWAYS FOCUSED ON SOREN AND EGLANTINE! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT IS LIKE TO BE INEXISTANT, EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE THE SPRINKING OLDEST?!" Kludd snarled, as a bit of tears started to show, "When I became Metalbeak...I finally felt like someone finally believed in me, that I was second to no one!"

"Kludd..." Soren said, never realizing that Kludd held this sort of resentment towards him, in fact, he never even thought of him being jealous of him, "Why didn't you say anything?"

"Oh, your naivety dumbfounds me! You always go on and on about the glaux damn Guardians that da told you about, and how they are all high and sprinking mighty, when in reality, they are nothing but a load of SPRONK!" Kludd screamed.

This shocked Soren as he then angrily defended, "Kludd, that is not true. They are real! The Lyze of Keil, the Guardians, Ga'Hoole, they're all real!"

"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT! You think that because you are a Guardian makes you stronger and better than me?" Kludd asked sarcastically.

"No…Kludd, that is not it at all…" Soren said, as his anger dissipated.

"Uh, sir, should I stop this?" Nix asked Skarmoris, as even he had a bad feeling that this argument was about to get worse.

"Hold on, Nix, I like to see where this is going…" Skarmoris said with a wave of a wing.

"Wait…you said you became the most glaux awful being on Mother Earth because you believe we favored Soren over you?" Noctus asked a bit stupefied by his son's words.

"I don't believe, I know! You always loved him more than me!" The scarred owl shouted, his anger getting more intense.

"That is a lie, Kludd! Your mother and I loved you as much as we do Soren and Eglantine. Don't you see that we are your family?!" Noctus reasoned.

"NO! You were Soren and Eglantine's family! My family was the Pure Ones, they had believed in me like no one ever had! Metalbeak was more of a father to me than you ever were in the past damn sixteen years!" Kludd angrily remarked, appalling Noctus and Marella, shocking Soren, and surprising everyone else, including Nyra.

"This is absurd! You are willing to choose a madman and that wench over your own flesh and blood?" Noctus asked, now genuinely angry, as he gave a deep glare at Nyra once more. Normally Nyra would have glared back at him for calling her a wench, but given what Kludd said, she could understand why Soren and his father hated her, maybe she was coddling him at first, and sure she would of thought of using him, but she couldn't, his loyalty and his spirit to the Pure Ones' cause was what win her over.

"SHUT UP!" Kludd roared, his eyes burning with anger, "Metalbeak was the greatest owl I had ever known! But you owls wouldn't see it! He was wrongfully killed by a barn owl that brings shame to the name 'Tyto!'"

"My glaux, son, were you so damn blind by your petty jealously that you would actually become leader of the Pure Ones? That you want to kill your brother?" Noctus snarled.

"Petty jealously?" Kludd muttered, "You think I did all of this…all just because of jealously?" As he suddenly wing-punched Soren in the face, shocking everyone, except Biggs and Wedge, who just stood there holding Soren, as Kludd then screamed, "I BECAME METALBEAK JUST SO YOU WOULD ACTUALLY BE PROUD OF ME! I WAS KING! RULER OF THE PURE ONES! I HAD IT ALL!"

"Emphasis on the word 'had'" Nix quipped, prompting a glare from Nyra, which quickly dissipated when she saw the anger and pain in Kludd's eyes.

Kludd continued, as he then pounded Soren in the face again, "ALL I EVER DID, I DID TO MAKE YOU PROUD!" He punched Soren once more, "TELL ME HOW PROUD YOU ARE, FATHER!" He punched Soren in the guts, "TELL ME!" He demanded, with insanity creeping in his voice, "**TELL ME!**" as he delivered a powerful wing slap that knocked Soren to the ground, panting with rage as he faced his father, who was surprisingly looking at him with disappointment.

"You tried to kill the Guardians, you moon-blinked Eglantine, and worst of all, you tried to kill your brother…how is that anything to be proud of?" Noctus muttered.

Kludd's panting ceased as he heard him say that, as his heart immediately started hurting once more, as he then spat, "What's your point? It's obvious that I never be good enough for you…"

"Kludd…" Marella tried reasoning, as she wanted to scold Noctus for being harsh.

"No, it is damn well obvious that all I ever going to be is nothing…even Soren have given up on me…" Kludd muttered more, as his voice went to a low hurt tone, prompting a sad look from his family members, as well as Nyra.

"That's not true…"

Kludd turned to his left, as his brother tried to get back up, but was assisted (somewhat) by Skarmoris's two soldiers, as he winced from the pain inflicted by his brother's blows, as he said, "In all the time you were a Pure One, I never gave up on you, even when you became Metalbeak, because I always believe you could come back to your senses…"

"Is that so?" The scarred Barn Owl muttered, as he remembered a fresh wound that opened earlier that night, "Wasn't the reason you kept my identity a secret was to spare them, quote unquote 'the anguish of the damn monster I have become?'"

Soren's blood froze when he heard those words, as he whispered, "You…you heard that?"

He was answered as Kludd closed in on his face and said with deep venom, "Every single word…"

"Kludd, I didn't mean…" Soren tried explaining.

"SAVE IT!" Kludd snarled as he smack him with his left talon (as his right talon had his sword), before having a déjà vu of doing this before…two years ago, prompting his heart to hurt even more, "You know…I would have expected everyone else to call me a monster, and I would have taken it…but you…I thought you were above this." He muttered.

However, Nyra was more disappointed, "You called your own brother a monster?! How could you say such a thing?!" She demanded to know, surprising Noctus and Marella a bit, as they didn't expect the 'evil queen' to have a conscience.

"Stop pretending you care, Nyra! It is obvious you think no more of me than Soren does." The male barn owl snarled, surprising Nyra as well as Soren and the band.

"What are you talking about? I l-" Nyra asked mystified before Kludd blew up once more.

"Love me? Or do you just fear me? Like a monster? Just like Metalbeak?" The scarred faced owl sarcastically questioned.

It was Nyra's blood that froze that time, as she immediately realized what he was referring to, "You mean…you…"

"Heard what you said? Yes, and I also heard what Gylfie said about me being not like Metalbeak!" Kludd finished, his heart now throbbing deeply in pain, prompting Soren to give an equally disappointed look to Nyra while Gylfie received surprised glances from the others.

"Kludd, I wasn't meaning it like that!" Nyra defended.

"Oh, and just exactly what did you mean?" Kludd demanded with hurt eyes, "That no matter how hard I try, I can never be Metalbeak or Surtr, is that it?"

"No, it just-" Nyra tried to say, but in reality, she had nothing. She inwardly cursed herself for even suggesting that thought earlier, and now she was paying the ultimate price for it, the heart of her new love…

Kludd let out a hurt sigh as he growled, "I loved you, Nyra…" those three words instantly surprised his parents and the nursemaid, and prompted a inward growl from Skarmoris, "I would have fought to the bitter end for you, hagsmire, part of the reason I became Metalbeak, was so I could hope to be a great owl like him…but you made it plain as night that I can never hope to amount to him…"

"No…Kludd, that's not…" Nyra tried pleading, as she felt her own heart hurting.

"I GIVEN EVERYTHING UP FOR YOU!" Kludd screamed, cutting her off, "My family," He glared at his family, who returned sad glances, "My face," he touched his scar delicately, "I took the helm of Metalbeak just so I could honor him and continue his legacy…but, as it turns out, I did all of it…ALL OF IT…for nothing…" as his eyes were becoming misty, prompting Nyra herself to tear up.

"Kludd, I truly do care about you…it just that…I was so afraid of what Surtr become…when he became Metalbeak, he became so obsessed with vengeance that it ended up killing him in the end! I just don't want the same thing to happen to you!" Nyra confessed, tears leaving her eyes.

Noctus and Marella were both confused by those words, this was the queen of the Pure Ones that were saying such words, she was rumored to be one of the most wicked and black-hearted beings on Mother Earth, she manipulated and killed owls for her and Metalbeak's gain, and honestly, they believed she seduced Kludd into becoming a Pure One, but there were no denying her eyes and the tears within them, she truly did loved him, although they were quite shocked that Kludd had attracted a much older owl (not much older, mind you) and a Pure One at that, they couldn't help but feel a bit of pride for him...

Her eyes also surprised Soren, all this time, he always thought that she was the reason Kludd abandoned them, using her devilish charm and beliefs to practically mold Kludd into the owl he was now…but now, he knew that wasn't true, but if she wasn't the reason, then what was?

Nyra's words seem to have an effect on him, as his angered expression damper a bit, but it was soon replaced with more deep angered glare, as he then said, "So you think that I am weak? That I am going to die like Metalbeak, that's it?"

This prompted a horrified glance from Nyra as Kludd misinterpreted her, as she tried to shake her head, "No, Kludd, that wasn't…"

"I AM NOT WEAK! I CAN STAND ON MY OWN!" Kludd snarled, as he then gave Nyra an evil glare, "I don't need you…" Those words shocked the white Barn Owl, as her heart broke from that statement, "I don't need any of you!" He repeated, pointing at the band and Ezylryb, astonished by his anger, "I don't need anyone!" He gestured to Noctus and Marella, also shocked by his words, and finally, he finished his rant as he looked at Soren with the strongest of death glares, as he muttered "and I sure as hagsmire don't need you..."

Soren was frightened by his words as he tried shaking his head, "No…Kludd, I know you don't think that!"

"Again with you thinking you know me, you don't know me, Soren! If anyone's weak, it is you, always going on about your glaux-damn dreams!" Kludd sneered.

"Kludd, dreams are what make you strong, that what the Two Brothers of the North taught us, to always follow your heart and dreams. We were raised together. We played together. We were inseparable. We were brothers…do you remember none of that?" Soren pleaded, as he saw the pain in his eyes.

Kludd merely shook his head, "I remember a shadow…living in the shade of your greatness…I remember you shaming me, killing Metalbeak, and always act like the better owl…but no more…I refuse to live in your shadow any longer!" He finished, as he eyed the sword within his right talon, and raised it up towards him. (**The Avengers reference…again**)

This shocked everyone, and (to other's dismay) intrigued Skarmoris, as he seen the owl raised his sword at his brother, as Ezylryb asked, "Lad, what are you doing?!" afraid that he knew the answer…

"Something that I set out to do a year ago…I now only have one goal, to myself and Metalbeak…to finally kill the owl that had been nothing but a bane of my existence all my life and avenge my master!" Kludd explained, "This is the only reason I have left to continue fighting…"

A bunch of gasps were heard, as they were shocked by the owl's dark intentions…

"No, Kludd, you can't!" Gylfie pleaded.

"Yeah, what you doing is wrong!" Digger reasoned.

"Think about what you doing! He's your brother!" Twilight demanded.

"Kludd…please…don't…" Nyra weakly begged, as she couldn't bear to see her love (despite what he said to her recently) do such a horrible act.

This however steeled Kludd's resolve, as he shouted, with his eyes turning red, "SHUT UP!" turning his voice into a darker pitch, "You should be happy, Nyra…I am finally going to avenge your dead mate, by taking his life! His death is the only thing left that kept me going, his death will finally end all this pain that I felt all my life, this is the moment I had been waiting for all my life!" He finished with a cruel laugh.

"No, Kludd, it doesn't matter if you kill him, it won't bring him back!" Nyra looked at him with pleading eyes, her tears coming down, "It's not what I want…not anymore…"

"Son…please, he's your brother…" Noctus tried to reach out.

"NO! I HAVE NO BROTHER! AND SURE AS HAGSMIRE HAVE NO FATHER!" Kludd rebutted, his eyes burning a deeper red (if that was even possible).

"Kludd…I understand that you are hurt and angry…"

"Those words don't even begin to describe what I'm feeling! You always stood up for him and his stupid dreams. You always chose him over me and now I am going to make you feel what I felt for so damn long!"

"You need to stop this, Kludd…" The old Screech Owl pleaded, as he could see the pain in his eyes, "This isn't what you want, Kludd. I can understand what you are feeling, but if you continue down this path, you are not just going to hurt your father…you will hurt your family, the Guardians, your friends, your love…but worst of all, you are only going to hurt yourself even more. Your pain will only grow worse, and you will be all alone…and have no one to blame but yourself."

Kludd's eyes flickered a bit as he heard those words, but his stubbornness, both a good and weak point about him, held strong as he muttered, "I am afraid it is too late to go back…"

"No, Kludd, it doesn't have to be like this…" Soren said, managing to overcome his shock of his brother holding his sword up to his chest, just like his dream had foretold that night, with red eyes, "Maybe we can't change the past, but we can still have a future together, we can be like we were when we were kids."

"Oh, Soren, this isn't like the story of the Guardians, or any other stories for that matter. There's no good triumphing over evil, no guys getting the gal, or redemption for fools like me. This is **life**; you cannot just turn back the hands of time and act like what happen a year ago didn't mean anything. I had chosen this path for me because I just wanted to be recognized…so I did everything within my power to see that path to the end…but even that didn't work…I can never hope to take back my kingdom…I won't be able to defeat the Guardians…the only goal I can accomplish now…" Kludd muttered, as he stared at Soren with a grim glare, "Is to end your life…" He said with cold absolute.

"Please…Kludd, don't do this…" Marella pleaded, not believing what Kludd is saying.

"There has to be another way!" Mrs. P joined Marella in her begging.

"Son, please, I'm sorry!" Noctus tried struggling, but Jatt hold firm, despite struggling to hold down Digger, Twilight, and Marella, "Please!" he cried desperately.

Unfortunately, Skarmoris, who watched the scene unfolded with sick and malicious interest, then chuckled, "Well, well, well, I suppose I was wrong about you, Kludd, your hate has made you powerful. Now…fulfill your destiny and prove your worth! (**Can you guess what reference this is to?**) Give into the darkness, and let it fester and boil!"

"Don't listen to him!" Ezylryb snarled, as he gave a glare at the Sulawesi Masked Owl.

"You don't have anything to prove!" Nyra pleaded deeply.

Soren looked at Skarmoris and back at Kludd, who held his sword firm at his chest, as he tried to think of a way to reach him, but nothing came, he was about to meet his end at the talons of his brothers…and for what? Soren thought back to what he said, '_I had chosen this path for me because I just wanted to be recognized…_' Suddenly, it hit him.

All this time, all the way back to the Forest Kingdom of Tyto, back when they were branching, him pretending not to know who he was when he was made a picker, him not running away with him and Gylfie, battling him amongst the burning forest of Beaks, trying to kill him on several occasions…and two years back, on that day (**see ch 13**)…all of it revolved around _him_. Then he remembered Samuel's words from the night he saw Kludd again, '_You must learn to realize that your brother has his own reasons for the things he done, instead of blaming something that has little to do with it…_' Everything he ever did was so da would actually be proud of him for something, so that he could feel like he meant something to him…and he, his younger brother, had been taking that away from him all this time. All this time, he had blamed something else for Kludd's joining the Pure Ones, Nyra, Metalbeak, and how they brainwashed Kludd…but in reality, he wasn't, he did this just to prove to everyone that he meant something, all of his actions was all because of him…and he could understand why. He humiliated him by doing better than him and scarring his face (although it was Kludd's fault, he felt that he had a part in that), he killed an owl he respected (he regretted killing him more than he did before), and the fact that he firmly believed that he was wrong and the Guardians were right, he had every right to hate him...and despite how much it would hurt everyone, he had to accept his fate, but before he does, he needed to do one more thing…

"Kludd…" Soren addressed, prompting a raised brow from his angered brother, "I understand now why you want me dead…"

"Do you now?" Kludd asked sarcastically.

"Yes…I now know that you have every right to hate me, I had failed you as a brother, because of my blindness of being right and just, I had wronged you, and I am sorry. If you want to kill me, I won't stop you." He said with absolute, astonishing Kludd and everyone else.

"What?" All of Soren's friends and family, and Nyra said at once.

Kludd was caught completely off guard by this apology, as his stance weakened, but his anger still had a grasp on him, as he then snarled, "NO! Don't you dare play the better owl! I am sick of it! Why aren't you begging for mercy?! You suppose to hate me!"

"I can never do that, Kludd. You could break every bone in my body, send your blade through me till there nothing left of me to stab, you can hurt me all you want…but I will never hate you, because you are my brother…I will always love you and forgive you, because that what families do…they forgive." Soren sagely said, prompting a smile from Ezylryb and Noctus, as well as the others, and rolling of eyes from Nix and Skarmoris (who were growing sick of such 'familial drama').

Kludd's stance weakened once more as he heard those words, as his eyes turn back to normal for a brief moment, as he was processing what he said, but he then screamed, "ENOUGH! STOP TRYING TO GET INTO MY HEAD! YOU ARE WRONG! THIS IS THE END FOR YOU!" as he held his sword tightly to his chest, seething with anger, as his heart and mind was practically duking it out, as he then snarled, "Any last words?"

Soren then sighed, "Yes, brother, I have one more thing to say…concerning why I had branched better than you…"

"I already know why…you picture yourself as a bloody Guardian, preparing to take flight, I know that spronk." Kludd muttered angrily.

"That only inspired me a little bit…but what had truly inspired me to become a better owl…was you…" Soren confessed, as tears welled up in his eyes, prompting Kludd's eyes to soften, they were still red, but his expression was now…surprised. The younger brother continued, "All this time, back when we were young owlets playing tag in the hollow, your words had inspired me to try my best, when Nix had me in his grasp when we were just kids…" This prompted shocked looks/glares at Nix from everyone, who returned a scoff, "You defended me, even though you would get hurt. You were always a inspiration to me, I wanted to grow up to be like you…but never in my life had I ever intended to make you feel like you're nothing…you are my brother, and I am sorry for all the pain I had caused you all these years, but no matter what, I will always love you and respect you as an older brother…" Soren finished, with tears streaming down his cheeks, as he whispered once more, "I'm sorry..."

Kludd remained emotionless as he said those words, he still held his sword tightly, but then his eyes went back to normal, as he then said, "So am I…" as he raised his sword to prepare to strike the final blow. Soren knew this was going to happen because of his dreams, but now knew why Samuel had come to him, to help him make amends for his mistakes, although he will never have the chance to grow old with his love Otulissa and their children and their children's children, or see Ga'Hoole ever again, he knew this was his destiny, as he closed his eyes, not out of fear, but of acceptance.

The scarred Barn Owl was shocked by how calm Soren was, despite facing his executioner. How could he still love him? How? Despite everything he said, everything he done, he still loved him? His first thought went to that he was just playing the martyr…like he had so many times before, but the strangest thing was that his words were actually affecting him.

He tried shaking the thought as he prepared to do the unthinkable to him, this was his crowning moment, the moment he have been waiting for all his life, the moment he would avenge Metalbeak and make the pain go away…but then…why wasn't he attacking? His sword stayed risen at his shoulder, but it just stood there.

This confused Kludd, as he tried to focus once more, as he tried to attack…but it never came. Frustrated, the owl shook every doubt and thought in his mind, as he raised his sword higher, as he was determined to finish what he had started…but then, as he was about to bring his sword down…memories started to echo in his mind, as visions from his past started to flash before him…memories of him and Soren. (**This is similar to what happens to Cloud in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children**):

Memories of him and Soren playing together twelve years back…

"_Hey, Kludd, you think one day I might beat you at something like tag?_"

Memories of him and Soren after their brief scuffle with Nix…

"_I'm_ _sorry I got you hurt…_"

Memories of them…when their relationship went in a downward spiral…

"_But…I am your brother…_"

Then it flashed to him saying that motto Kludd had long ago forgotten…

"_Brothers always look after each other…other…other…_"

The last word echoed within the mind, as more scenes quickly flashed by, as his sword started to quiver, Kludd managed to hide it, but the words came…

"_My dream is what makes me strong, Kludd…they led me to the Guardians!_"

"_How can you join them after what they did to us?_"

"_I won't fight you for no reason, Kludd._"

"_I don't want to fight you, Kludd."_

"_I'm your brother, doesn't that count for anything?_"

"_Is a little recognition really worth all this pain and suffering?_"

The last question repeated itself to Kludd, as he then eyed his friends and family, Noctus, Marella, and Mrs. P looked with pleading eyes, as well as Soren's friends Digger, Gylfie and Twilight, along with Ezylryb. All of them then closed their eyes (Mrs. P covered her eyes with her tail, since she had no eyelids), as they braced for the worst, as Kludd then looked at Nyra…as he was shocked that she was looking at him with eyes that begged him not to do it, as she closed her eyes as well. The mate of the owl that his brother killed, didn't want him dead? Her action and the question made him think was all of this hate, all of this pain, everything…was it truly worth it? His memories had an answer…

"_What about ma and da? I haven't told them, you know. About what you have done. Because it would break their hearts. They'd be ashamed of you, Kludd…_"

"_What if what happened to Surtr is happening to Kludd, what if he is becoming a monster?_"

"_You only accepted it, because you wanted revenge on a measly Guardian._"

"_Is it selfish of me for wanting to see the smile of my parents when they have their eldest son back instead of anguish OF SEEING THE DAMN MONSTER KLUDD HAVE BECOME?!_"

No, his mind answered that last question…all this time, Kludd had tried to kill his brother and everyone he held dear, and not once had he ever tried to retaliate, in fact, he tried to help him, that night in the fire, Soren tried to save him, despite what he done, and how did he repay him? By trying to bring him down into the fire…he deserved that scar that now stained the left side of his face…he deserved to be called a monster…he was becoming no better than Skarmoris and Nix themselves. His personal quest for recognition and domination was birthed out of jealously, because he was so blind to see that he had it all along…his brother Soren looked up to him…Nyra and Metalbeak believed in him…as well as his ma and da, even if they didn't show it…Soren's friends, despite his attitude and hostility, were more than willing to accept him into the group and lay their lives on the line for him, even Soren's teacher, Ezylryb, despite wearing his rival's helm, trusted him…and Eglantine…the Barn Owl looked at the young owlet, as she looked at him with confused and scared eyes…his sister had loved and trusted him, even when he could have potentially damned her to an eternity of being moon-blinked, because somehow, he didn't know why, Eglantine never stopped believing in him as well.

Kludd returned his focus to Soren, as his sword was still not budging, as his heart started to ache…not out of heartbrokenness or guilt, but of pain…pain that was begging to be released. His sword started to quiver, much to Skarmoris and Nix's confusion, and to Jatt and Jutt as well. The cousins had little to no concept of what was going on, as they focused on juggling their grips on their prisoners, but all they did know was that their old master was having second thoughts about what he was doing, something they never seen him done before (they always thought him to be hard-core).

As Kludd stood there, practically frozen, his memories unleashed one more salvo, as everything that happened to him, from his time in the Forest Kingdom of Tyto, him falling in love with the queen of the Pure Ones, him becoming Metalbeak and his promise to Nyra, and skipping ahead to moments within their adventure coming here, surviving the Poison Briar Bog, defeating Harris and his crew, learning how to fly using his gizzard, and the times inbetween the last two, as they enjoyed each others' company…then the scenes began to repeat and flash by him rapidly, as he started panting, and his entire body started trembling, as memories, old and new, good and bad, cycled through his mind at a high rate of speed…as he then heard the voice of an owl that had come to him before the whole thing started…

"I knew you could remember, Kludd…"

The Barn Owl then let out a loud scream as he brought his sword down…

Soren braced for the pain as he heard the scream…but it never came…in fact, he heard a metal crashing against the ground. The Guardian Barn Owl opened his eyes, as he looked at himself (as well as he could, Biggs and Wedge still had their talons on his wings) and noticed no wounds…then he looked forward…to see the sword that was suppose to end his life…stabbed into the ground, and next to it…was the now crying and shuddering form of his brother, as he gripped his head in sorrow. This came as a surprise to Soren, Kludd rarely ever cried, even as an owlet, maybe that contributed to his pain, but all that he knew now, that his brother was crying now.

Nyra and the other owls opened their eyes as well, to see that Soren was still alive, much to their relief, but then their relief turn to sorrow as they saw Kludd, completely distraught and trembling, as they heard his soft cries of sorrow and anger. Skarmoris, on the other hand, looked with disappointment that the owl actually chickened out before killing him…and here he thought he was capable of being worth something to him…

"Kludd…" Soren addressed, trying to soothe him.

"Why…" Kludd whispered with his face buried in his wings, "Why can't I do this? I don't understand…"

"Brother…it's okay…" Soren said in a calming voice.

"NO, IT'S NOT OKAY!" Kludd snarled, as he raised his head, as tears tricked down his face, "I'M SUPPOSE TO HATE YOU! I'M SUPPOSE TO WANT YOU DEAD! I HAD GIVEN EVERYTHING UP JUST SO I COULD DO IT…WHY? WHY CAN'T I KILL YOU NOW? WHY DO I FEEL SO GLAUX DAMN AWFUL?" The scarred barn owl demanded.

"Because it wasn't what you wanted…" Ezylryb answered with a sympathetic expression, as Kludd turned to face him, "Your heart realized what you truly want…your mind and that voice in your head may say otherwise, but in the end, only your heart knows what it truly desires."

Those words echoed in his head, as he remember the final part of the prophecy that Samuel that told him…

"_And the king will realize what his heart truly desires_."

His heart? That what was stopping him? His heart, after all this time, decides that he doesn't want to kill his brother? It didn't make any sense, no sense at all, and that was what made him even angrier…

"I DON'T UNDERSTAND!" Kludd growled, "WHY SHOULD I FEEL ANYTHING? I WANT TO KNOW WHY! PLEASE, WHY?!" He finished, as he let out another set of sobs in desperation.

"Kludd…" Eglantine said, as she felt sorry for him…her brother had held onto such pain for so long, pain that was just begging for release, and now, he was so confused and lost, and he of all owls didn't deserve to be in pain right now…he was her brother, no matter what…

Unfortunately, Skarmoris answered Kludd, "You want to know why?" as he approached the hurting barn owl. Kludd turned his face towards the intimidating owl, as he said, "I show you why…" with a false sympathizing look, as he then smacked him across the face with his right wing in anger.

"KLUDD!" Everyone gasped, as Soren and Nyra tried to struggle against their captors as well as well as the band and Noctus.

Skarmoris relished in their helplessness, as he then spat at Kludd, "You…are…_weak_! That is all you are!"

The Barn Owl wanted to fight back, but his spirit was torn down so much, that he couldn't gather the strength…all he could do was take the evil king's words lying down.

"The reason you had failed all your life is because your heart is weak!" Skarmoris snarled, "Your heart can't handle the darkness that many Pure Ones have in their hearts, yet it is already tainted to the point that it can never be as good as a Guardian…you are just one of those beings…you're not truly a Pure One...but you're not a Guardian…all you are is a pathetic waste of existence, I know that, Nix knows it, and I am sure everyone else knows it!"

Those words only broke Kludd down even further, as he close his eyes in shame, but then he heard his brother's voice…

"YOU'RE WRONG!" Soren snarled, as he heard the Sulawesi Masked Owl's words, he wasn't going to let anyone impugn his brother,

"Kludd is one of the strongest owls I had ever had the honor and pleasure of meeting…" Nyra declared angrily, "He was loyal to our cause and to the people he cared about…he never stopped fighting, no matter what…that is why I loved him…that is why I refuse to let you hurt him!" As she tried struggling against Nix with all her might, as Kludd looked at her and Soren with confused eyes.

"Damn it woman, stop trying to fight me!" Nix groaned as he tried to keep his grip on the barn owl.

"Oh, Nyra, you truly are a fool, I guess it takes one to be mated to one." Skarmoris quipped dryly, as he then looked down at Kludd, and gripped his throat, as he said to him, "They are blind to see what I see…weakness, and this is what I do to owls that are weak…" as he raised his free claw…

Eglantine saw this, and seeing how Nix's grip on her as weakened as he focused on restraining Nyra, she managed to wiggle out of it, and quickly she stepped forth and then shouted, "He's not weak! You are!"

The Sulawesi Masked Owl stopped, as well as the others, as they all eyed the young owlet, as Nix realized that she got out of his talon. Soren and Kludd, as well as Noctus and Marella, gaped at what she said, either she was being brave or reckless, they couldn't tell.

Skarmoris however, was surprised, as he then got off of Kludd, and looked at the young owlet with his piercing silver eyes, as he asked, "What did you say to me?"

The young owlet gulped as she saw the evil owl stared her down, but at least he wasn't about to kill her brother, not yet at least, as she continued, "You heard me…Kludd is not weak, if he was weak, he would have let the voice tell him what to do, he could have left me to slave away, moon-blinked, he could have killed Soren when he had the chance, but he didn't, he was only mean because he was hurt, but that never stop that little voice in his heart, the one you might call an angel, from trying to help him. He may act mean, but I know deep down that he is good, and he will always be good, and he always be my brother, and no one can say otherwise."

"Eglantine..." Kludd whispered, he didn't understand why his own sister could still love him but still...he felt a bit of weight lifting from his heart, as her words circled through his head..."_Angel? Could she actually mean that?_"

Before the older brother could think anymore, Eglantine then adopted a pout as she pointed at Skarmoris, "But you...you are nothing...nothing but a BIG MEANIE!"

Everyone went mute, as Eglantine gave a little pant from what she just said. Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight looked at Eglantine with shock, as well as Jatt, Jutt, and Nix. Soren, Nyra, Noctus, Marella, and Mrs. P all looked with surprise at the little owlet.

Ezylryb was impressed, as he never thought the owlet would have such a spirit, he contributed that to her two brothers, and he knew that she could be a great Guardian someday...

Skarmoris then started to snicker...which then turned to a chuckle...that escalated to a laugh...and soon, he was now bursting in chortles, as he continued laughing with insanity, slightly disturbing the other owls...fortunately, his laugh stopped as he then gathered himself up instantly as he then said, "A meanie? Of all the things I had been called, meanie ought to be one of the least effective insults I had ever heard..."

The owlet frowned as that was the meanest thing she could think of...

"Although I must commend you for having the gizzard to say such a thing..." Skarmoris continued.

Eglantine's expression became confused, as she gave an "Huh?"

"...I now wonder what it will taste like..." The Sulawesi Masked Owl finished with a dark smirk as within a sudden instant, he snatched her up in his talon.

"EGLANTINE/NO!" Her loved ones screamed, as they saw the owlet squirming in his grasp.

"Look to the little one, owls, let her be a shining example of what happens to those who defies me directly!" Skarmoris evilly chuckled, as he looked at the little owlet with horrifying eyes.

"NO! YOU CAN'T!" Marella screamed as she tried to break free from her captors.

"PLEASE! SHE'S JUST A LITTLE GIRL!" Noctus cried with tears of desperation falling, as he tried to get loose.

"MAURICE! PLEASE DON'T DO THIS!" Nyra tried reasoning, as she tried to shake Nix off.

"STOP THIS MADNESS!" Ezylryb pleaded, as he was struggling as well.

"HAVE A HEART FOR GLAUX SAKE!" Twilight demanded.

"EGLANTINE, NO!" Digger and Gylfie both shouted, as they tried getting free as well.

"NO! LET MY SISTER GO! YOU BASTARD!" Soren snarled, as he attempted to charge at him, but Biggs and Wedge's talons held firm.

Kludd looked with horror as he saw the evil king had his sister in his talons and everyone else in a uproar, as Nix, Jatt, and Jutt struggled to keep them in line. As much as he wanted to stop him...he just...he just...

"NO! PLEASE! MA! DA! SOREN!" Eglantine begged, as she was horrified.

"No one's going to save you, little one. Not your parents, not the Guardians, not even your big brother..." Skarmoris sneered, as he clutched her tighter.

The little owlet was so afraid that she felt tears coming out of her eyes, as she then cried out, "KLUDD!"

Kludd's eyes darted open when he heard his name, as he then felt something...something that came from within him seven years ago when his brother was in peril, and a little while ago when Nix had threatened to kill his brother (ironically, it was the same owl as before), and now it was coming back as his sister pleaded for his name. It was in that moment when he realized what Eglantine and Ezylryb had meant about his heart...it stopped him from killing his brother because all along he never wanted his brother's death nor recognition...his mind had been twisted so much by his jealously and hate that he had failed to see that what he truly wanted was in front of him...the feeling of belonging...a Guardian in his own rights, to protect his loved ones from anyone who would tried to take them away...he may have failed to do so in the past year...but now...now was the time for him to make things right, to finally fulfill the uncompleted part of the prophecy, foretold by the snowy owl that had set him on this path for a reason...to restore the bond between brothers... (**See what I did there?**)

Within that moment, as everything seemed to have slowed down significantly, as the Barn Owl raised his glance at the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as his eyes were now glowing with a glimmering flame. Then, he rise to his feet as he then glanced the sword that was thrust into the ground next to him, and with newfound strength, he quickly pulled it out and held it at his side as he darted forward towards Skarmoris...

Skarmoris and the others were caught off guard, as they saw the owl suddenly darted towards the usurper king, as he let out a battle cry. Kludd didn't noticed the glances as all he could hear now was the beating of his heart and his own cry as he charged at the taller owl. The masked owl had no time to react to Kludd's sudden charge as the Barn Owl swung his sword at him, it didn't go deep as the blade ran along the his chest, spreading a little blood out as the force knock Skarmoris backwards into his throne as he let out a groan, as his talon splayed open, releasing Eglantine from his grasp.

Eglantine let out a cry as she fell, but soon, she was then enveloped within the wings of an owl…Eglantine opened her eyes to see the concerned look of her brother, as she then whispered, before tearing up for joy, "Kludd…I knew you were good." as she buried her face into his feathers letting out a few sobs.

The scarred Barn Owl, relieved that she was all right, gave a small smile, as he shushed, "It's alright, Eglantine…I'm here…your big brother's here…"

Soren and the others stared in shock and awe, as they witnessed Kludd's selfless act, but eventually, Soren, his parents, Mrs. P, Nyra, and the band's expression turned to that of a smile, as they saw Kludd embraced his sister…

"Well, I'll be damned…" Ezylryb uttered.

"I don't believe it…" Soren said with a smile.

"Son…" Noctus smiled, as he felt a bit of pride for what he was seeing.

"Kludd…" Nyra whispered, as she felt pride as well in her love interest for what he done.

Unfortunately, Nix and the cousins didn't share their delights as they were shocked not only by their old king's audacity…but by the nightmare that he had just unleashed…

"Uh-oh..." Jatt and Jutt both said in unison as they saw their new king laying there.

"Now he had done it..." Nix quipped as he was somewhat concerned about his lord as well.

Skarmoris winced his eyes in pain, as he tried to get back up onto his feet, using his iron perch as a support. He opened his eyes wearily as he felt a searing pain in his chest, as he felt it with his normal-colored wing, as it burned even more. "_Damn it...why does it hurt so much?_" He thought, as he took the wing off, but his heart stop as he saw his wing...as it had a blotched line of blood dripping down it. He was shocked, he hadn't bled a drop of blood ever since from the wound he got from Metalbeak three years back, but back then, he was weaker in both physical and metaphorical state, but now...he had a gash running along his chest (not deep enough to be fatal), and it was inflicted by no more than a meek Barn Owl with family issues who couldn't hope to match his power...this was unexcusable...

The king looked at the Barn Owl in question, as he was still donning a serious glance, as he placed Eglantine next to him, with his sword clutched tightly. His right eye began to twitch uncontrolably as the newfound pain and the anger built up inside of him, as in a unnatural calm voice, he asked, "You dare make me bleed?

"Uh-oh..." Twilight whispered.

"I do not like the look in his eyes..." Digger said with fear.

Gylfie looked at Ezylryb, "Please tell me you have an escape plan..."

"I'm working on it, but the thing is, we would need a big enough distraction to give all of us a chance to escape..." Ezylryb grunted, as he tried to survey the area for a possible distraction.

However, Skarmoris then muttered in a low, dark, and viciously angry voice, "No one makes me bleed...and gets away with it..."

"Kludd, I'm scared..." Eglantine whimpered as she clutched Kludd's leg tighter.

"Well, that makes two of us..." Kludd muttered, as he felt a bit of fear in his gizzard as he saw the angry Sulawesi Masked Owl.

Soren looked on with fear as he wished his wings were bound by the two Barn Owls that had his wings in their talons, and given how tight a grip they had on them, they showed no signs of letting go. He saw Ezylryb as he was looking around, probably looking for a way out, the Guardian Barn Owl followed his example, as his eyes quickly darted around for something...then he looked up to his right to see one of the Pure Ones' banners, slightly dangling in the wind. "_That banner could work...but if only there was someway that it can become more distracting...maybe like a..._" Soren completed that thought as he saw a lamp of fire hanging on a chain which was tied to the ground at the opposite end...next to Ezylryb, "_That's it!_"

The Screech Owl stop looking as he saw his apprentice looking in his general direction, and saw the flag hanging next to him, then he looked at what Soren was looking at, as he stifled a gasp to see a chain holding up a lamp of fire...which to him was a glaux send, as he looked at the flag and the fire and immediately put together a plan involving the two. He looked at Soren (who was now looking at him) and with a nod, they had a understanding of what they must do, as Ezylryb mouthed, "Wait for the right moment." then he turned to his fellow captives, who were now staring at him for any ideas, as he then whispered, "Wait for my signal..."

Skarmoris was now fuming as the adrenaline of his anger dulled out the pain he had, as he was about ready to rip the owl who represented all the bad memories he had and the cause of all his pain to shreds...with a loud snarl, he then spread his wings as he charged at the Barn Owl with his claws scraping along the floor, as sparks flew.

Kludd quickly prepare to intercept the Sulawesi Masked Owl as he placed Eglantine behind him, and braced for his claws...

"NOW!" A loud voice echoed.

With that loud voice from the Lyze of Keil, everything seemed to had slowed down once more, as he then all of sudden rolled out from under the giant Long-Eared Owl Jatt (who was focused on what Skarmoris was about to do to his old master) as he then swunged his artificial talon at the chain next to him with the utmost force he could mustered, and sure enough, the link was shattered to bits. As soon as that occurred, the lamp, with no chain holding it up now, felled to the ground with a bounce and rolled in front of the charging owl in the middle of the room, with a bit of burning charcoal spilt..

Although it didn't stop the Sulawesi Masked Owl as he was continued charging, his eyes focused on Kludd, it was enough to distract Biggs and Wedge, as their attention quickly diverted to the lamp. It was in that second that Soren managed to pull his wings from their talons and spread it back, knocking the two Barn Owls off balance and to the ground, as he then swooped upward and clutched the banner with his talons and with all of his might, he ripped it off the rafters. Then, as if the wind was in their favor, it gave a decent enough breeze that it blew the banner onto the knocked down lamp...

And in a sudden catalyst, the banner went up into a raging flame. The burst of flame happened just as Skarmoris was in front of it, as it then prompted the Sulawesi Masked Owl to recoil backwards due to the instant increase in temperature as he let out a growl of pain...

Then, in a split-second, everyone reacted. Noctus and Marella quickly bursted out from under Jatt, who was still recovering from losing his balance, knocking him backwards against a column, dazing him a bit. Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight seized the opportunity as well, as with their combined strength, they threw Jutt off of them as well, as Mrs. P quickly slithered out of his weakend grasp.

Even Nix was surprised by the sudden flash of the flame, as Nyra then swung her head back against Nix, knocking him off her, and quickly swung around to throw against another column, dazing him as well, as Nyra said with a spit, "That's for calling me a nagging wench!

As soon as Kludd manage to catch up on everything that happened around him, he quickly shouted, "RUN!" as he grabbed Eglantine with his talons and flew towards the door. He didn't had to tell any of them twice, as Noctus, Marella, and Mrs. P (who slithered onto Noctus' left talon) along with Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight quickly followed suit, as well as Soren and Nyra, as they give a quick glance back at Skarmoris, who was recovering from the burst of flame, as they took flight.

As soon as they landed in front of the closed doors, Twilight and Digger quickly worked to push the doors open, along with Ezylryb and Gylfie's help. The obstacle quickly gave way and soon, they were able to get out of there.

"Let's get the hagsmire out of here!" Digger exclaimed.

"I'm with you, lad!" Twilight agreed.

"This way!" Gylfie shouted to Soren and Kludd's family as she gestured out the door

"Come on, move your tailfeathers!" Ezylryb barked as he gestured to the door as well, "That fire won't hold him off forever!"

Noctus (with Mrs.P), Marella, followed by Soren and Nyra, along with Kludd and Eglantine, were just about to pass the doors...when Kludd suddenly stop, as he then looked back.

Soren quickly took notice of this and stop in his tracks, as well as Nyra and the others as he then asked "What are you doing?! We have to get out of here!"

Kludd then shook his head, "No...I can't..."

Nyra, shocked by her love's answer, demanded, "What?! Why not?!

"Look, Skarmoris is going to hunt you all down if he is given the chance...I can't give him a chance to hurt my family...I have to stop him myself." Kludd explained.

"What? NO!" Soren exclaimed, "You can't fight him! He will kill you!"

"He might...but I have to do what I can to buy you time to get as far away from this place as you can..." Kludd stated with absolute.

"Please, Kludd, we just found out you were alive...we can't lose you again!" Marella said, as tears threaten her eyes.

"Dearie, you don't have to do this!" Mrs. Plithiver begged; as she couldn't bear seeing one of once-presumed dead loved ones go off to a fight that he might not win.

"Son, please, you don't have to try and play the hero!" Noctus pleaded.

"I'm sorry, ma, da...I have to do this...it is the least I can do to make things up to you..." The scarred Barn Owl muttered, prompting a sad look from his parents.

"Lad..." Ezylryb whispered, as he inwardly smiled at the owl's noble sacrifice.

"Kludd?" Eglantine meekly asked from inbetween Kludd's talons, as she was afraid of what her brother was thinking of doing.

"I'm sorry, Eg, your big brother has one more thing left to do..." Kludd said to her.

"I don't understand..." The little sister stated sadly, as she thought her big brother was happy again so he could return home with them.

"Look, I need you to be strong for ma, da and Soren...promise me that you will be strong." Kludd requested.

The owlet, not sure of how to answer his request, nodded, "Okay..."

"Good..." Her big brother said with a slight smile, as he then passed her to his mother, as he then said in a firm voice, "Now go while you can!"

The adult Barn Owl couple, along the nursemaid and Eglantine, shared sad and uncertain looks as they hesitantly flew away.

"That goes for you guys as well!" Kludd ordered Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight, "Make sure they get out of here safely!"

The trio looked at him with equally unsure eyes, as they then gave a nod and flew out as well, leaving only the two brothers, Nyra, and the old Screech Owl...

Kludd then looked at his brother, who was now looking at him with pleading eyes, as he said, "Kludd, I can't lose you...not again..." as tears welled up in his eyes.

"Brother..." Kludd sighed, as tears was now threatening his eyes, but he swallowed them down as he then embraced him, "I want you to know that no matter what happens, I love you...I was always glad to call you my baby brother...and I want you to take care of ma, da, Eglantine, and Mrs. P..."

"I will, Kludd..." Soren nodded, as tears fell from his eyes, as he then flew off to join his family and friends.

The scarred Barn Owl let out a sad sigh when a tear of his own dropped, as he then turned to Ezylryb, who was still standing by the door, "Sir...take care of him for me." he requested.

Lyze smiled at the younger owl, as he said, "Of couse...just be sure to give Skarmoris a few knocks for me," he added with a cocky smirk, as he flew off as well.

This left only Kludd and Nyra, both once-rulers of the Pure Ones kingdom...before Skarmoris's darkness had shrouded it all. Kludd looked at Nyra with sad eyes, as he then eyed the remaining half of Metalbeak's helm within her left talon, then shifted towards Nyra's face, who, much like Soren, was on the brink of bursting into tears as well.

Kludd, feeling horrible about what he said to Nyra earlier, apologized, "Nyra, I-"

Before Kludd could finished that apology, Nyra immediately did something that he been wanting to do for a while now, but still didn't expect it...she leant her head forward and connected her beak with his, as she gave him a powerful kiss. The scarred Barn Owl was caught completely off guard by her actions, but he couldn't help but relish in it as he closed his eyes. The beautiful and passionate moment seemed to have last forever...but in reality, it was ten seconds.

As soon as the beautiful white Barn Owl pulled away from Kludd, the male Barn Owl was a little disappointed, quite shocked, but nonetheless satisfied, as he had a feeling that his love forgave him. Then Nyra said to him, with tears in his eyes, "Promise me you will come back...promise me that you will never leave me..." as she then spread her wings and flew off...

The Barn Owl let out a pained sigh, as he turned around to face the flames that were still burning, and even though his love was now out of earshot, he then said to himself, "I promise…" as the doors shut behind him…

Skarmoris, even though his sight was somewhat obstructed by the fire, he knew that his prisoners (not to mention feast) was getting away, as he then in sheer anger, bellowed, "ENOUGH!" as he spread his wings with enough force to generate enough wind to blow the flames and the burning remnants of the flag out of the way. When the smoke cleared, he saw his men, now getting back onto their feet, and in the middle…his blood boiled...he saw none other than Kludd, as he was holding his sword firmly.

Knowing that the others are probably trying to escape, he then ordered, "NIX, JATT, JUTT, BIGGS, AND WEDGE, GET THE OTHER PRISONERS!"

Nix, shaking his head to ward off the light-headedness he felt, quickly lifts his head in shock, and then glared at Kludd and at Skarmoris, "But my liege, Kludd is…"

"KLUDD IS NOT YOUR CONCERN! GET THE OTHER PRISONERS OR SO HELP ME GLAUX I WILL MAKE YOU MY NEXT MEAL!" Skarmoris snarled in vicious anger.

The African Grass Owl was about to say no…but knowing what happened to the servant two nights ago when he questioned him, he had no choice but to comply, as he gave a spiteful glare and growl at the Barn Owl and flew off.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl then turned to the two cousins, who were now getting to their talons, as he then angrily shouted, "WELL?! GO!"

The two cousins quickly jolted as they quickly jumped into the air and after regaining their balances, they flew off after their general, and as they flew past Kludd, the Barn Owl could have sworn he heard them said good luck…

Biggs and Wedge, who were the least dazed, were quick to follow their king's orders as they flew out of the chamber through the columns rather than the doors, leaving only the two owls within the chamber…

As soon as Biggs and Wedge left the chamber, Skarmoris then turned to Kludd with a look of contempt as he said, "Well, Kludd, your friends had managed to pull a getaway, I give them that…but my boys will hunt them down for the disease-infested rats they are…"

"I'm not worried…" Kludd lied, he was extremely concerned about them, but if there was anything he had learned from Metalbeak, Nyra, as well as Ezylryb and Soren altogether, it was to never show fear to your enemies, "Five of them are Guardians, the same ones that manage to defeat Metalbeak a year ago, if they could pull that off, they can easily escape two wingnuts, two mindless slaves, and a giant pain in the tailfeathers…" He boasted.

"Yet you are still here…why would you stay behind? For owls like that, you would have to be either very brave…or terribly foolish…I am leaning towards the latter." Skarmoris taunted.

"I am not running." Kludd stated with a glare, "I am going to put an end to this madness you have created for yourself."

"Are you now? I am shaking in my feathers…" Skarmoris mocked, "What makes you think that you hold a candle to me? I defeated you once, and I can do it again without even blinking."

"Oh really? That bleeding scar on your chest seems to tell me otherwise." The scarred Barn Owl sneered, as he secretly smirked at the wound he caused.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl's cocky expression immediately darkened as he then growled, "Enough of this taunting game! I will make your last moments here on Mother Earth a living hagsmire. I will make you feel every bone snap, guts spill, and the ripping of the remaining part of your face…and then I will kill every one of your family and friends, one by one, and then…I will finally prove to Surtr who the true king of the Pure Ones…and I will finally prove to father that I am the true king of this condemned world!" With that, he spread his wings, spreading black and brown feathers everywhere as he did, as the two bladed armlets shifted onto his talons into two finely designed silver blades, much like he did three nights ago, as he went into a predatory state…

Normally, such words would intimidate the Barn Owl…but given the situation that he, and his family were in, he couldn't afford to be stared down. With eyes of the holiest fire and the swing of his sword, he then said in his bravest voice, "In that case…may the best king of the Pure Ones win…" as he then took a battle stance as well, for this was his finest hour…as he and the usurper king were about to engage in the ultimate showdown that could decide the entire fate of the owl race…

* * *

**A/N: You guys didn't think I would let Skarmoris eat Eglantine, did you? I may have brought in cannibalism and rapist hawks, but even I wouldn't do something that dark. To people like Elete12 who were getting sick of all the chatter…I am sorry, but this chapter had to be done to finally reach the climax…the climax of which Kludd finally releases all of his pent up anger from over the year as he reveals all the reasons behind his hate for his brother. I would like to thank TearfulFriend18 (Again) and Animation Universe 2005 for their stories, Skies of Darkness and Escaping to Ga'Hoole had inspired the confrontation scene between Soren, Kludd, and Noctus. I had a bit of trouble at points, and an actual time where I was about ready to ask Sychronized Harmony and TearfulFriend18 for help, but I opted against it as I figured it out on my own (sorry again for bothering you) as well as blucatcinema for excerpts from his stories (I challenge you to name where each of those phrases during Kludd's flashbacks come from…hint, some of them came from earlier chapters in this story). I also wanted to give a shoutout to LandoftheFuture for creating the first Metalbeak fic (which is also his first LotG story). I hope I captured all of the characters enough (I kinda regret putting in too many characters in that room), and I hope you KluddxNyra fans (I talking to you Crazybird101) jumped with joy of the two lovebirds finally kissing (although it was kinda short). For those who wanted an epic showdown…you guys only have to stay tuned for the next chapter, and I hope you guys have Bringing Down the Giant or the One-Winged Angel (rock rendition) song at the ready, because it is recommended for the many battles we are about to witness…READ AND REVIEW!**

**(To Crazybird101: I saw what you did to Nyra in the final chapter review of Skies of Darkness, and to say the least, I do not approve. I hope you apologize to her and enjoyed the touching scenes within this chapter. On another thing, I been thinking, maybe we should make a forum where we could chat, so we don't have to sign off in order to respond to further messages of each other.)**

"_No matter how far you had succumb to the darkness, there is still a chance that a light can pull you from it…only if you reach out and grab it._"

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated**_


	20. Bringing Down The Giant, Part II

**A/N: Okay everyone…you guys have been waiting many chapters for this…and what more to celebrate the twentieth chapter of this story than to have it hold the spot for the ultimate showdown…Our favorite Pure One owl Kludd against the almighty infamous Skarmoris, one of my greatly designed (in my opinion) OCs. Not only that, it will also host two other battles, that has yet to be revealed in this chapter. Now, as the fourth part of the finale, it is now time for the long-awaited second part to BRINGING DOWN THE GIANT!**

**NOTE: It is official, we had broken the 5,000 views barrier, THANK YOU ALL!**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole...if I did, this story would probably be its sequel.**

**I do not own Bringing Down The Giant or Saving Abel, but the song is EPIC!**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: blucatcinema's newest story for LotG: OoG, The Siege of Ga'Hoole, had recently came up, in case anyone who wonders, that story will also not play any role in this story.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl.**

**P.S. As you read this chapter, please play the rock version of One-Winged Angel (as heard in Final Fantasy VII Advent Children) or Bringing Down The Giant, it is highly recommended.**

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Chapter Twenty: Bringing Down The Giant, Part II

_"I hit the wall, I got back up and dusted off, I'm past the pain and I'm taking back all that I lost, I'm going to kick you off the throne, hang your crown upon the wall, yeah, your glory days are gone, gone, gone…"_

- A verse from Bringing Down The Giant by Saving Abel

The clouds spiraling around above the ancient Pillar of Supremacy began to roil even more as rain began to fall from the sky, in multitudes of drops, immediately dousing anything that would be caught in such a horrid weather. The winds had begun to pick up as well, as it carried the rain around at a high velocity, that to an untrained eye, it would seem that it was raining completely sideways. With such a powerful storm now unleashing around the tower, all it would need now to perfect it was thunder and lightning, and given with the events that were occurring now, it should be coming in a matter of moments…

In the highest room of the pillar, within the throne room, the winds blew through the columns, as two beings stood on opposite ends of the room, a Barn Owl, with a scar marking the left side of the face with a bronze sword at his side, the tip covered in blood, and a Sulawesi Masked Owl, standing tall, with his left wing shrouded in black, and two silver blades that gleamed in moonlight, and eyes of the coldest silver, both of them stood there, staring at each others with eyes of unmatched fury, as the sound of the howling winds echoed throughout the room.

Skarmoris was the son of the Deathbringer, abandoned by him as a little hatchling because he deemed him weak. All his life, he had suffered from being shunned, losing the chance of having love to his master, being banished and dishonored…basically one unfortunate event after another…it wasn't before long that his mind had given into the darkness, a unknown deity that resided in every owl, but only manifested in certain beings it took a liking to, such as those who have the capability of donning red irises, who at times take on forms of other beings that the owl in question is familiar with. That darkness, as cruel and unforgiving it was, it could be deemed beautiful to the right eyes, as more often than not, it was strongest, as power attracted power, and despite the immorality and how soul-sucking it would be, no owl could deny that darkness…wields power. (**A quote from synchronized harmony, again with my adjustments**)

It was this darkness that gave him the key to unlocking ultimate power via the unspeakable Cannabis Regime, the method of eating another owl, dead or alive, potentially wiping your mind clean and turning you into nothing but a empty void, or twisting it to a point of where the owl shouldn't even be associated with. The latter would be what had happen to Skarmoris, who formerly went by the name Maurice. At first, he let the darkness in so he could make himself worthy of a beautiful owl that he had fallen in love with, thinking the things would be right when he had her…but little did he know that he was playing into the darkness's hands, as he followed it's guidance, he only sealed his fate as his mind became more demented, and towards the end of the third year of following the abovementioned method, a little ways before he perform the coup d'état on Kludd and Nyra, as powerful and mighty he had become, he merely became a puppet for the darkness within him, acting as it saw fit.

After hearing the crushing rejection from the beautiful owl, his heart was broken…but due to the prolonged corruption of the darkness, it had little to no effect on it, as the heart was almost completely pitch black. Love, and every other emotions and feelings for that matter, had become meaningless to him. The only emotion that he could feel now was anger…one of the strongest feelings aside from love and fear, and the most potentially dangerous one at that, as it feeds the darkness more, and makes it even more powerful. It was such emotions that were going through the Sulawesi Masked Owl's mind as he stared at the object of all his anger and hate, as bits of blood dripped from his long scar across his chest, inflicted by the said owl, as methods of torturous and gruesome murder to how he would kill him cycled through his mind…

The owl who was unfortunate enough to be caught within this intimidating gaze was none other than Kludd, a simple Barn Owl from the Forest Kingdom of Tyto who, within days, had elevated from a normal owl to a soldier within the Pure Ones to king of the Pure Ones…only to be knocked back down by Skarmoris a year later. One would wonder how Kludd could have possibly resisted the strong pull of darkness unlike Skarmoris. The answer is quite complicated, as three years earlier, darkness had begun to grow within him after the feeling of envy and resentment had begun to arise within him after a long time of being overshadowed by his little brother, coincidentally (and ironically) around the same time that Maurice had given into the darkness.

Kludd was an owl who sought to seek approval from his father and the adoration of his family, only to be inadvertently thwarted by his brother Soren, when the dark being within him begun to take an interest in the boy, as hate and anger, both benefactors to the said being, towards his brother was growing. The dark feelings (**shoutout to blucatcinema**) had grown worse when he heard the inspirational (to him it was) speech given by Nyra, as the belief of the strong ruling the weak appealed to him, and when his brother and Guardians for that matter said otherwise, he was more than willing to take him and the noble warriors out of the picture. His anger and hate, as well as a portion of the darkness within him, fueled his rage as he battled Soren within Beaks, as his strong desire for acceptance hungered for the younger brother's blood. In the end, however, it failed him, as he fell into the flames, forever scarring his face, as the Guardians prevailed over the Pure Ones, and Metalbeak met his untimely end…but…after the brother recovered from nearly being burned alive, his hate and anger (and consequentially, his darkness) only grew more, as he made it his ultimate goal to slay his brother and avenge Metalbeak. With this goal in mind, he became king of the Pure Ones, as if it was all part of a greater design, the darkness festered even more as Kludd focused on ending his brother and finally achieving the peace within his heart that he believed would result from doing so, and it would seem that he would become like Skarmoris, knowing nothing but hate and anger, being nothing more than a puppet on a string…

But there lied a difference between the two beings that stood in that room, a difference that was quite unfortunate if you really thought about it, that difference was none other than love. Maurice had never had that feeling of being loved and cherished by others, due to the fact that everyone feared him, even Aunt Finny, who made it her personal duty to see to it that everyone kept away from him. When Surtr took him in, he finally felt it, and it became stronger when he met Nyra and for eleven years, he could actually be happy…but it was all undone by his darkness, which blossomed from his jealousy towards Surtr for taking Nyra away from him, and it was that jealousy that eventually got him banished by his master, who himself had fallen into darkness's grasp. All that love he felt was shattered into pieces, leaving him with nothing once more, and when the dark being, in the form of his late father, came to him, he was easy for the picking.

Kludd on the other hand was different because despite his anger and hate, he could still feel love, as his brother Soren never gave up on him, and as much as Kludd wanted him to, he could never stop loving him, and it was what kept his heart strong. However, due to his pride and his still overwhelming anger, he couldn't see it, but even then, darkness could never take a hold of him, as Nyra, who had partially succumb to the darkness, had fallen in love with him, and despite them doing evil deeds in tandem, the feeling of love that Nyra gave him made him stronger than ever. And, with their quest throughout the worst parts of the territory, and the time he spent with Soren and his friends and tutor, the hate within him began to fade. Despite the unintentional hurtful words, not meant to be heard by Kludd, bringing the hate back, his heart, supported by the love he never lost from his family, his love from his queen, and the words of the Two Brothers, saved him from eternal despair of his darkness…

Now here stood Kludd, with sword in talon, as he stared at Skarmoris with determination and anger, as he listened to the wind. Unbeknownst to the evil owl, the barn owl had a bit of fear within his heart, as he never took on another owl that outmatched him in strength and speed, and he was still pretty new to wielding a sword, while Skarmoris had years of practice. He was also afraid for his family, the commotion would have certainly raised alarm within the tower, causing the entire enhanced army to come after them, and with a large group of the band, his family, and his love, he couldn't help but picture the worst…Kludd shook the thought, this was no time to worry about them, he needed to take his own advice and stay strong. His prayers were with them, as he knew that he was doing this so he could protect them, or die trying. He tightened his grip on his sword, as he mentally prepared himself before going into one of what he would believe to be the greatest and most difficult fight of his life…

Would it be enough however? Which emotion would prevail over the other? The owl with a heart of darkness, anger boiling within…or the owl with a tainted yet good heart, running on the beliefs and love of all the owls that he cared about? This was the moment of truth, as the storm grew worse around the pillar. Whose blood would stain the floors of the sacred halls? Who shall fall and who shall rise?

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(**Cue the One-Winged Angel music**)

**-1-**

The answer to all these questions have begun to be answered, as Skarmoris, sick of waiting for his opponent, made the first move as he charged with a powerful scream that echoed throughout the entirety of the Pillar of Supremacy towards Kludd, with his two swords raised, as Kludd met his blades with his own…

Unbeknownst to everyone within the tower, as Skarmoris let out that scream, the lightning flashed across the skies and thunder bellowed, thus perfecting the storm. The Hagsfiend's Sea responded to the perfection of the storm with growing waves that begun crashing against each other with impeccable force. One in particular made its way to the pillar, swallowing every wave in its path, growing to such a size not much bigger than an oak tree. Within seconds, that said tidal wave crashed against the ancient architecture, hitting it very hard. As soon as it subsided, the pillar stood…but after weathering for centuries against these temperamental waves, that one wave make a very large crack with it's base, and as more waves crashing around it, pieces of it began to fall out, and sounds of scraping rocks were made as the tower began to slowly move…

**(-)**

Nyra looked back at the throne room with tears in her eyes as she and the others flew out in the elite's training grounds, with the remaining piece of her dead mate's helm in talon, as her heart prayed for her love's safety, as much fate she had in him, there was only so much she could have, as this was once her friend that he was facing, corrupted by glaux-knows-what...

However, her thoughts were interrupted as Digger asked, "Are you sure we should leave Kludd to take on that guy on his own?"

"I know you are worried lad," Ezylryb said, "I am as well, but we mustn't focus on him now, we have to get out of here and fast!"

"Ezylryb's right," Soren agreed softly, as much as he hated to admit it, they to focus on getting his family out of here before something horrible happens, "Kludd can take care of himself, we just need to find a quick way out of here."

"How about the skylight?" Gylfie pointed at the hole in the ceiling, "It's seemed to be the quickest way out of here."

"Right you are, Gylfie!" Nyra nodded, shaking her fears away, "Follow me!" as she then pull upwards towards the opening, followed by Soren, his family, Digger, Gylfie, Twilight and Ezylryb. This escape route seemed perfect, unfortunately, as if the universe made it that way, anything that turns out to be perfect usually turns out to be just awful. That is proven, as the scream that Skarmoris let out acted as a trigger for the clouds, as lightnings suddenly flashed in the sky, blinding the queen, as she flinched away from the hole. If that was not enough, the doors to the throne room suddenly burst open as a quick brown blur launched itself out of the room and towards the queen, as he blindsided her to the ground, as the shard of Metalbeak's helm fell from her talon…

"NYRA!" The band and Soren shouted, as they are then knocked to the ground as well by two owls, although not as quick as the first owl, Ezylryb quickly stopped Noctus and Marella as the two owls, which turned out to be Jatt and Jutt flew in front of the skylight, prompting them to land next to Soren and the others.

The queen opened her eyes, as her body was now wincing in pain, as she looked up, only to seethe in anger, as the owl that attacked her was none other than her traitorous lieutenant Nix, who was donning an angry scowl.

"Going somewhere, your majesty?!" He demanded sarcastically.

"Yes, Nix." Jutt answered dumbly as he and Jatt landed, "They were going-"

"SHUT UP!" The grass owl snarled at the long-eared owl, as he turned to the white Barn Owl and Soren, who was just getting up, but glaring as equally as Nyra at him, as he sneered, "I may not get the satisfaction of ending that stupid fool myself, but I guess that his girl and his brother will suffice."

"It is you that is the fool!" Noctus snarled, as he was about to attack, but Ezylryb stopped him, "No, Noctus, he is too dangerous!"

"Indeed, I am, you old coot. I can end all of you here and right now…but then again, the other soldiers got to eat too, you know." He darkly smirked, as sounds started to emanate from the tunnel leading up to their location, prompting the good owls to frown in fear…

**(-)**

Within that tunnel, a swarm of Pure Ones, corrupted by the Cannabis Regime, were now flying upward with accelerating velocity, as they heard the sound of their master's scream, as they rushed to his aid…leading this swarm was none other than the scout, who had served as the usurper king's spy, as he was snickering. "Come on, you dogs! Our king demands our presence, and that must certainly mean that there's blood to shed!" he shouted, as he let out a laugh of sheer insanity…

(**Take note that the events between Kludd and Skarmoris and Soren and the others are taking place within the same moment, the '(-)'s represents changes of scene within the same moments, and the -number- means the continuation of the story**)

* * *

**-2-**

Kludd and Skarmoris' blades locked, as their swords scraped against each other, but the Sulawesi Masked Owl possessed more strength than the Barn Owl, as he pushed him back. Kludd was given little time to recover, as Skarmoris quickly lunged at him with his swords, as he swung his two blades with precision. The scarred Barn Owl quickly jumped left and right to avoid the downward swings of his swords, and leapt back as Skarmoris swung both of them outward. Kludd retaliated by swinging his sword back at him, but the evil king blocked it with ease as their blades met.

"Oh, Kludd, how I pity you, you think you can beat me? Even without the Cannabis Regime, I have ten years of being a trained Pure One over you. From where I'm standing, I do not like your odds." Skarmoris taunted as he pushed him back once more, and charged forward at the Barn Owl, but he quickly rolled out of the way.

"Well, odds were made to be defied." Kludd said, as he and Skarmoris paced around each other "I was trained under the queen of the Pure Ones herself, and not once has she ever let me down."

"You think that Nyra would actually be mates with you?" Skarmoris fumed, "Let's face reality, the one she ever truly loved was that fool Surtr. I may not know why, but I know that you will never be him!" He swung his two swords in a hammer-arm fashion, prompting Kludd to glide over him, as the black-winged owl struck his blades into a nearby column, getting it stuck.

"You're right, Skarmoris." Kludd agreed, as he approached him, "I can never be Surtr…or Metalbeak for that matter, I was foolish to think that wearing his helm would make me as great as him. Greatness cannot simply be passed on…it must be earned. But I do know now that Nyra loved me for me, not because I wore her mate's helm. She kept me going even in my darkest moments!"

"Please, you are blind to your emotions! Don't you realize that if you were to become a Guardian, you will have to kill your beloved?!" Skarmoris smarmed, as he started yanking his two swords out, "Face it, you and her are destined to be torn apart, by race and history!"

Kludd's stern glare still stood, as he was silent for a moment, but he then said, "I do not know what will become of us…I am not even sure if I am worthy of her…but all I know is I will still love her, no matter what happens…and I know I will protect her, and I will see to it that you never get the chance to hurt her!"

"Oh, I might not…but my legion will!" Skarmoris chuckled darkly, as he suddenly pulled his blades out and quickly knocked Kludd to the ground, as he crossed his swords to his throat, much like he did three nights earlier, as he then closed in on the struggling Barn Owl's face, "It is futile, Kludd! Long have I walked in hatred's company. As long as I can curse your name, I shall not be defeated! Your friends and family dies! As they must, for surely you cannot protect them! Know now the despair father has taught me!" He said in insanity as he raised his left sword, and prepared to end his opponent…

But as he did, more waves crashed against the weakened base, prompting the mighty tower to tremble, as the crack grown worse…

That sudden tremble was all Kludd needed, as the earth shaking was enough to throw Skarmoris off balance as he tried to readjust his position to keep his foe trapped, but Kludd reacted in that sudden moment as he then rolled from under him and with quick precision, he got to his feet and pushed off the ground right into the bigger owl, and with that momentum, the two owls were thrown inbetween the columns and out into the storm…

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The tremor did not go unnoticed, as the flying swarm of mindless Pure Ones soldiers, led by the scout felt the tunnel shaking. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, what is going on?!" The scout demanded, as bits of rock and dust was falling upon them, as they continued upwards, close to the elite's training ground. Then, suddenly, the ceiling at the top of winding skyward tunnel began to crack, as rocks, more decently sized, began to rain upon them. "No…no…NO!" The scout stammered, as he started to turn around, but the group of owls that followed him knew no difference between what was safe and what was fatal as they continued upward, and soon the entire tunnel collapsed, as stone and dirt buried the scout and that group, silencing them forever and sealing the pathway…

**(-)**

The Guardians and the Pure Ones felt the ground shaking under them as well, as they started to keep their balance.

"What in hagsmire is going on?!" Nix screamed, eyes darting around the room, as bits of the over hanging arches fell onto the ground.

"I suddenly have a bad feeling about this…" Twilight whimpered, as he got back to his talons, feeling a bit of fear.

"Well, this is honky-dory! First, we are going to surrounded by cannibalistic soldiers, and now the room is shaking?!" Digger cursed.

"I'm afraid it is something much more than that, Digger!" Gylfie said with uncertainty.

"Mum, I'm scared," Eglantine whimpered from within her mother's talons.

"I am, too, dear." Marella fearfully admitted, as she looked at her husband.

Noctus didn't know what to say, he had never imagine himself in a situation like this, then again, he never expected Kludd to be Metalbeak…he sighed inwardly at the fact that he was still shocked by that.

Mrs. P looked at Noctus and Marella as she too was growing fearful of what their situation was becoming, and for that reason, she tightened her coils on Noctus, almost to a point of cutting blood circulation.

Soren and Nyra looked at each other with fear, as their thoughts returned to Kludd once more, as he must certainly be noticing this as well.

However, it was Jatt and Jutt that broke the tension as they were also growing skittish, as Jatt complained to his general, "Nix, sir! I am not liking this!"

Jutt nodded, "He's right! We have to get out of here!" Then a piece of rock suddenly hit him on a head, dazing him a bit.

"Oh, no…" Nix denied, gathering his courage, "I am not going to pass up a chance of hurting that Barn Owl if it kills me! That means we are not leaving, not till every owl in this room are torn asunder and my claws are bloody, DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!"

"My glaux, you're mad!" Ezylryb shouted in anger, "Are you honestly going to risk your hide just to kill us?!"

The grass owl answered with a demented smirk, "Oh, you're damn straight I am going to risk it all, I will never stop, till your hearts stop beating!" as he was about to lunge at them, as Nyra and Soren along with the Guardians prepare to intercept…when suddenly, the tunnel exit (where the swarm and the scout was traveling) caved in, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Nix's attention quickly diverted to the disturbance, "What the f-"

Before he could utter that profane word, the old Screech Owl seized the opportunity as he charged at the grass owl with a battle cry and quickly pinned him to the ground.

"Sir, what are you doing?!" Soren asked, surprised by his attack.

Lyze looked at him as he struggled to keep the owl pinned, as he ordered, "I need you and Nyra to get your family to safety! Your friends and I will hold these blaggards off!"

"What?! You can't be serious!" Nyra exclaimed, "You said so yourself, he's dangerous!"

"I know! But we have to make use of this opportunity while we can! You and Soren must get them out of here!" He looked at Noctus and his family, who were equally surprised by his request, "Please…take care of your family…we will be fine!" Ezylryb pleaded as Nix was starting to break free.

Soren shook his head, "Sir…I-"

"It's alright, Soren!" Gylfie interrupted, as she looked at Nyra and him, "We're Guardians, we were trained to handle situations like this," she finished with a reassuring smile.

The young barn owl looked towards Digger and Twilight, as they gave him a nod of reassurance, as they prepare to take battle stances, as Soren then sighed, "Fine, we'll go…"

Nyra herself was touched by their willingness to throw their lives on the line, a little peeved that they are dumb enough to take on what someone would call a 'supersoldier', but touched nonetheless.

"But how do we get out of here?" Noctus asked, "Apparently we can't go down, and we certainly shouldn't fly upward into the storm!

This prompted a frown from Soren, as his father was right, but then he looked to Nyra for any possible ideas.

The queen was just as uncertain, as she gripped the remnants of her husband's helm…only to realize that she dropped it when Nix attacked her, as she quickly looked around. Fortunately, the shard didn't fall far from when she was standing, as she prepare to grab it…but then a memory of her and Surtr suddenly flashed into her mind…one of her greatest…

"_Me and your father had found this when we were both new recruits. We reckoned that this was an old escape route, but when you come here as the moon sets, it is one of most damn beautiful things in the world…_"

It dawned upon her, all the time she and Surtr had used that place as a special secret hideaway for both of them, as a place that held most of her good memories, she completely forgotten that the place, to a normal owl…was an escape route, and with that in mind, her greatest memory would be the perfect way to get out of here…

"I know the way out!" Nyra stated with absolution, as she then spread her wings, "FOLLOW ME!"

Soren was about to follow her when Noctus pointed out, "Wait, how do we know that she isn't leading us to our-"

"NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO DOUBT SOMEONE!" Ezylryb snarled, a bit annoyed, "NOW GO WHILE YOU CAN!"

Noctus immediately silenced his doubts as Soren then said with determination, "Okay, let's get out of here!" as he flew off towards another tunnel, with Noctus and Marella following him…

"NO!" Nix snarled, as he began shaking the old Screech Owl off, "JATT AND JUTT, AFTER THEM!"

"On it, boss!" The cousins nodded as they were about to follow him, but then Twilight, Digger and Gylfie stepped in front of them, all with equally determined faces.

"I'm afraid your beef is with us!" Digger taunted, as he took battle stance, "Right, Gylfie?" he asked with a sideway glance.

"I couldn't have put it in better words myself!" Gylfie agreed, as she also took into battle.

"Quite right, my friends, it is a time like this where we make a stand!" Twilight bellowed in a proud voice, as he draws his lute out.

The two cousins' blood froze when they saw that lute, as bad memories from the year before arisen, as they were both smacked in the face by that accursed instrument, and to say the least, they still heard the sound of it beating against their skulls…

"BOSS! HE GOT A LUTE!" Jatt whimpered.

This merely angered Nix to a breaking point, as he then let out a vicious snarl, "OH FOR CRYING OUT…" as he then with his enhanced strength threw Lyze off with enough force that he landed in front of his three companions.

Fortunately, being the well-trained owl he was, he merely got back to his feet, as he took battle stance as well.

Nix got back up to his feet as he approached the four owls, as his co-lieutenants took a step back, not just from the lute, but from their now-severely peeved general, as he then demanded, "Step aside, fools! Your barn owl friends are mine to kill!"

Ezylryb, however, gave a fierce glare as he taunted, "If you want Soren and Nyra, you will have to go through us! All of us!" He finished as he looked at his comrades.

However, the grass owl didn't like that answer, as he felt hagsmire's fury burning within, he lost his chance to kill Kludd, and was now losing his chance to kill his brother and would-be mate. This cannot stand; it was time that someone finally dies under his talon... "You just made a big mistake, you crazy old fool!" he scowled as he flexed his battle claws.

"Not as big as you did, lad." Ezylryb rebutted, "You betrayed your king, cannibalized a few of your own men, kidnapped my student and his brother's family, try to kill that brother…to say the least, you mess with one of us…you deal with all of us! In the name of the Guardians and all of the owl kingdoms, to battle we fly!" He bellowed.

Nix along with Jatt and Jutt (after Nix gave them a vicious ordering glare) charged at the four Guardians, who in turn charged at them as they ensued battle…

* * *

**-3-**

Lightning struck across the sky once more, as Kludd and Skarmoris are thrown into the vicious rainstorm, immediately drenching their feathers as the two began to fall downwards toward the sea as the two struggled to regain balance.

Kludd tried to spread his wings, only to have one of them cuffed by one of Skarmoris's talons (as he switched his two blades off of him), as the Sulawesi Masked Owl gave him a vicious caw, and gave him a sharp peck in the face, and gripped his other wing with his free talon, and given his super strength, the scarred Barn Owl couldn't do anything except swing his battle claw and sword like crazy as they free-fall, both of them upside-down.

Skarmoris smirked as he then spread his wings and push the Barn Owl against the side of the pillar, as he skid Kludd's back down along the jagged wall, prompting him to cry in pain, as the evil king let out a dark chuckle as he heard his cries.

The scarred Barn Owl gritted his beak as he felt his back being scraped to no end, but thinking on his talons (or his head), he saw how the bigger owl's abdomen was close to his talons, and hunched his talons inward and with a grunt, and tapping into his rage, he pushed Skarmoris off of him, as the Barn Owl brought himself back right-side up, his wings now flapping, his back slightly aching from the new scratches, and he quickly narrowed his eyes at the now off-balanced Skarmoris, as he tried to recover, but Kludd didn't give him the chance, for as soon as Skarmoris gain his bearing, the Barn Owl charged at him at a high rate of speed. The usurper king had no time to react, as the younger owl barreled right into him, accelerating their descent right into one of the pillar's cliff edge.

As soon as Skarmoris was smashed into the ground, Kludd quickly flew off of him, as he maintains his battle stance, although it was slightly hunched from his injured back. The Sulawesi Masked Owl, despite being rammed in the ground, got up and merely shook any dust and rock off him, as he equipped his two swords instantly, as he swung them round and adopted a vicious battle pose, as he then taunted, while cricking his neck, "I must said, you got gizzard, kid, too bad I have to rip them out of you!" (**Spongebob Squarepants The Movie reference!**)

Kludd let out a snarl as he then charged at him, with sword raised. Skarmoris smirked as he lunged at him, as they begun another sword fight, as sparks flew and sizzled within the heavy pouring rain, as steel clashed against steel. Soon, Kludd's blade locked with one of Skarmoris's sword, while his battle claw kept his other blade down, as Skarmoris gave a slight grunt, but nonetheless smirked at the Barn Owl with an evil grin, as he asked, "Oh! Where did you find…" He let out another grunt, "This strength?"

"I'm not about to tell you!" Kludd shouted, as he then flapped upward and pounded his foe in his armored face, knocking him away.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl took a step back as he shook the pain off, as Skarmoris merely threatened, "Wrong move, boy…" as he looked at the Barn Owl with his silver eyes, as they suddenly flickered red.

Kludd slightly gasped as he saw his eyes turn red, the only owls he knew that could pull something like that was Nyra (when she was very angry) and himself, as much as he would hate to admit it, but if Skarmoris could do it…he was in for a more gruesome fight than he thought.

Skarmoris went on to sneer, "Your family is as good as finished, Kludd. Once my cohorts make mince meat out of them, and I put you down, my forces will be ready to take flight, and before you can say hoot, the Guardians will fall, and all the other kingdoms will follow, no owl will be able to stand up to us, and Tytos will finally take their rightful place as the superior species!"

"Is that supposed to scare me?" Kludd seethed, "Soren would die before he let the likes of you hurt his friends and family. He risked his life so he could help me…" he paused, as he realized how ungrateful he was to him that night, "Now it's my turn…I will defend them from the likes of you!"

"Hah! Defend? You? You who failed the Pure Ones _and_ your family? What can shame hope to keep safe? Your wings are flawed! Your oaths poison those you would protect!" Skarmoris laughed, as he then charged forward, running his swords along the ground, as he swung forward, as sparks from the swords flew, as Kludd weaved back to dodge every swing of his gleaming blades, but one sword made contact as it cut Kludd's unscarred cheek, prompting to him to flinch in pain, as he dodged another of his strike.

Kludd merely panted as he then blocked against one other attack, as he then grunted, "I don't have to explain myself to you!" as he slashed at Skarmoris's body with his battle claw, adding another wound to his chest, prompting the Sulawesi Masked Owl to howl in pain, as he step back, but Kludd kept up the pressure as he gripped him by his throat and pointed his sword at his face, as he stared Skarmoris dead in the eyes...

However, he laughed even more as he then sneered, "Hear me, Kludd. Do not think that killing me will win you back your honor. When you abandon your home and kin, your name was forever stained with shame. It will not justify all of your crimes, bring back those who died because of you, and you think it will prevent your parents from looking at you with those eyes...the eyes of disappointment? Admit it, Kludd, compared to your younger brother, you're nothing...and without your crown and kingdom, you are nothing but a stray, damned for all eternity to wander between our two worlds, with no place to call home...and you cannot change that fate."

The scarred Barn Owl paused for a moment...everything Skarmoris said was true...even though he no longer had Metalbeak's crown, he was still leader of the Pure Ones for that year, and he had almost killed their allies and took their children, and he had a part in Grimble's death. Forgiveness would probably be the last thing that the Guardians would ever give him and nothing can change that...but...

"I realize that, Skarmoris..." Kludd sadly stated, as he closed his eyes in shame, but then he opened them with fire in his eyes, "But I must try...maybe I will never be forgiven and maybe I will be cast out of both worlds...but even a stray has pride...and I will repay my debt and accept the punishment that is bestowed upon me…but for now, I will start off by finishing you!" He declared, as he thrust his sword forward.

Unfortunately, the waves hit the weakened base of the pillar once more, as the tower shook even more, as the entire structure suddenly slanted towards the right (the weakened side and where Kludd and Skarmoris are located), and when it did slant, it caused Kludd to trip forward, prompting him to miss Skarmoris with his sword. The Sulawesi Masked Owl make excellent use of this untimely miss as he then flipped his foe over him, sending him rolling down the now slanted cliff edge…

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Through the pillar-laced open hallways near the top of the tower, Nyra, followed by Soren and his family quickly flew through the hall as fast as their wings can carry them, hoping to get to the escape route before something horrible happens. Fortunately, the said halls were silent and desolate.

"Come on, it is not much farther!" Nyra yelled to her companions, as she took a quick landing to check on them.

"For Glamoria's sake, woman, can we slow down?" Noctus moaned, as he felt pain in his back, new from when Nix defeated him plus the old pain of when his back gave out two nights earlier as he then landed, "I am not as young as I used to be!"

"Dear, we can't stop! There could be soldiers coming after us!" Marella pleaded, as she landed as well, but she saw Noctus gripping his back, and immediately realized how much pain he was in. With concern, she then asked her son, "Soren, is there anyone after us?"

The Barn Owl, slightly panting from flying so fast when he touched the floor, looked around them, as he then sighed with relief, as he saw no signs of Pure Ones, in fact, aside from the storm that was unleashing it's heavenly fury, there was no sound or sight of anyone except them.

Soren then turned to his family with a calm demeanor, "No…I think we can make the rest of the trip on foot. Besides, it not like someone is suddenly going to barg-"

His reassurance was shattered as all of a sudden, a brown blur smashes through one of the columns. "GET DOWN!" Soren ordered, as he and his family ducked, barely avoiding the object's claws as it then landed on the wall. The Barn Owl looked at what attacked them only to be horrified to see that it was one of Skarmoris's two soldiers, and judging from it's slightly small size, it was Wedge, as he let out an abnormal roar, jumping from the wall and approaching them menacingly, and to Soren's dismay, a sharpened bronze sword in his talon much like Nix had before Kludd bested him.

"Good heavens!" Mrs. P shouted as she saw the evil looking owl.

Nyra quickly saw him as she screamed, "RUN!" as the owls quickly ran from the corrupted owl, but unfortunately, there was no end to their bad luck as another brown blur smashed through another column. Unfortunately, this blur didn't miss as Nyra immediately found herself pinned hard against the wall, face to face with Biggs, another of Skarmoris's men, as he roared in her face.

"NYRA!" Soren screamed, as he was about to charge the bulky Barn Owl when Wedge himself lunged at the Guardian Barn Owl, as he pinned and tried to stab Soren with his sword, but had trouble as Soren gripped his sword-wielding talon.

"SOREN!" Noctus, Marella, Mrs. P, and Eglantine shouted at the same time.

"STAY BACK!" Soren ordered, as he saw his family looked in fear, "Get somewhere safe!"

Unfortunately, Wedge took notice of them as he felt a stirring in their gizzard, and no longer paying attention to Soren as he suddenly jumped off of him and quickly flew towards his family.

"NO!" Soren bellowed, as he then charged at Wedge, knocking him back to the ground, as he wasn't going to let some messed-up owl go after his family.

"SOREY!" Eglantine screeched, as she saw her brother tackled the mute owl.

Biggs immediately took note of his comrade's distress, but due to the distraction, Nyra manage to push him off her, as she took a battle stance and gave a glare at Biggs, who was now focused on her again, as he then charged at her again.

Wedge, as soon as he hit the ground, quickly rolled away from Soren, who landed along with him, as he flourish his sword in a intimidating way. However, it failed to perturb Soren as he then raised his battle claws and charged at him, as he and Wedge and Nyra and Biggs engaged in their own battles.

Soren and Wedge started off as the helmed Barn Owl swung his sword swiftly, and his foe, not having his brother's luxury of having a sword on him, had to make do with his battle claws, as he dodged Wedge's slash and retaliate by swinging his claws, but Wedge merely moved his head to dodge his swipes as he punched Soren in his guts (which was already sore from when Kludd beaten him), causing Soren to keel over once more. The corrupted Barn Owl went on to run his sword through Soren, but he quickly weaved out of the way...

Nyra and Biggs paced around each other, as they stared each other down with a glare, as the big Barn Owl made the first move by swinging one of his talons down on the white Barn Owl, who in turn jumped backwards, only to see in shock of the indent Biggs made when he smashed where she was a second ago. Nyra then went on the offensive as she swung her talons and wings in a frenzy as she continuously hit the bigger owl, who made no attempt to dodge her attacks...because Nyra's attacks were doing nothing, as her wings to his face merely moved it a little to the left and right, and her claws were only leaving meager scratches on his tougher-than-usual skin.

The snow-white owl's attacks slowed to a near halt, as Nyra panted from all the energy she exerted in attacking him, and she was horrified that her opponent was still standing, not to mention frustrated, as she then balled up her talon and punched him in the chest...only to have it aching in pain, as Nyra let out a pained groan as she gripped it. Then Biggs swung one of his wings and smashed it into Nyra, knocking her to the ground.

"Gah!" Mrs. P gasped as she covered her mouth, seeing the big Barn Owl pinned Nyra once more, about ready to finish her off, and saw Soren struggling against Wedge as he swung his sword at him again, forcing him against a wall.

"I got to do something!" Noctus declared, as he saw his son and Nyra in peril, as he was about to leap into the fray, but Marella stopped him.

"No, dear! Your back is already hurting from two nights back, and sorry to say, dear, but you are no fighter!" Marella pleaded.

"Pish-posh! You underestimate me! I bet I could take one of them just like that!" He rebutted, as he brought his left talon downward to emphasize his point...only to have the Pillar suddenly shake again, but with a much stronger force. The hallway then started to slant a little, prompting all the owls to stumble a bit, as Noctus quickly took back, "Not like that!" as he tried to maintain balance.

Soren seized his opportunity as he kicked his foe back a few inches, but Wedge only got angrier as he held his sword in a predatory matter.

"What is going on?" Nyra said to herself, as she threw Biggs off of him, as he fallen back onto a column, as her thoughts quickly went to Kludd, only glaux knows how he is faring against her old friend, especially with how the pillar is reacting. She wasn't given much time to think, as Biggs let out another roar and charged at her...

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Within the elites' training ground, Nix let out an angry roar as his claws collided with Ezylryb, and with on a rotation of his hips, he threw the Screech Owl aside, then he ducked downwards to avoid a Burrowing Owl's charge, as he crashed against the ground, as he let out a dark chuckle. Then he tried clawing at an Elf Owl who was weaving around him, trying to get a hit in on him, and succeeded as he swatted her away.

"COME ON, IS THAT THE BEST YOU GOT?!" Nix taunted, as the three owls got back to their feet, all of them panting as they were struggling against the grass owl.

"Dammit...I never thought an owl would put up this much of a fight..." Ezylryb snarled in frustration, as he cricked his back a bit.

"Are you okay, Gylfie?" Digger asked his secret crush, who was recovering from being strucked.

"Yeah...erk...I'm fine, but what are we going to do? We can't hope to match his power..." The Elf Owl quivered with dread.

"We can't give up, lass. I don't know this owl at all, but I know he can be brought to his senses!" The Screech Owl said with determination.

"I don't know about that, he seems pretty angry!" Digger whimpered, seeing the seething expression on the grass owl, as he then asked, "What says you, Twilight?!"

The Great Gray Owl, instead of assisting the three smaller owls in helping them take on Nix, he volunteered on taking on his two dim-witted (but well-meaning) cohorts, Jatt and Jutt, on his own to, as he put it, 'lighten the burden on you three'. To say the least, he had his talons full, as the two long-eared owls were barging at him as Twilight dodge his lunges.

"I'm afraid...I can't...answer at the moment!" Twilight said between dodges, as he then swung his lute around to repel against Jatt.

"OW! That really hurts!" Jatt grumbled as he gripped the spot on his head.

"Well, my bumbling foe, that is the least of what will be hurting when I am through with you!" Twilight scowled as he twirled his lute around.

Nix darkly chuckled at Twilight's courage as he said, "You Guardians are imbeciles! Don't you see what Skarmoris is trying to do? He is finally setting things straight, us Tytos will finally rule everything as they had centuries ago!"

"Nix, listen to me!" The Lyze demanded, "I don't know what Skarmoris promised you, but you cannot expect him to let you live!"

"What nonsense are you spewing about?!"

"Think about it, lad! You are almost Skarmoris's equal in strength and speed, and the fact that you can still think for yourself makes you a threat to him! The moment you not expecting it, you will tossed aside like yesterday's meal!"

"Oh, Lyze, you fool, you think I hadn't thought of that?" Nix asked with a evil smirk.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Ezylryb asked with a raised brow.

"I should have you know, I bow to no one!" Nix snarled, "All my life, I had been kicked down by everyone I knew. But when I finally became a Pure One, I finally found my wings...only to have it ruined by that stupid Barn Owl! Now, with that idiot out of the way, I can finally have a chance of glory under Skarmoris…when he loses the right to hold that crown and falls, I'll take my turn and fan the flames as his blaze burns!" (**Guess whose lyrics I just reference to!**)

"You treacherous cur!" Gylfie snapped.

Nix ignored her as he continued, "I do not know how Skarmoris will go about purifying this world, but when he does, I will be ready to take it for my own!"

"I am afraid that will never happen, Nix..." Ezylryb rebutted, "Because Kludd will stop Skarmoris, and we will stop you!"

The grass owl let out a demonic laugh, "I dare you to try!" as he then charged at them again, with claws raised.

"INCOMING!" Digger shouted in fear as the three owls dodged his attack.

Twilight looked at Nix with concern, as he continued his one on two brawl with the cousins, as Jutt swung his talon, only to be met with the Great Gray's own talon, and while holding it, he swung him into Jatt, who was about to tackle him again, knocking them down...but not out, as they got up to their talons once more.

"Oh dear, this fight is going to take longer than I thought...well, there is only one thing to do..." Twilight stated, as he pulled up his lute and strum a tune as he sang, "_Oh, do prepare to meet your untimely end, so I can go help out my friends..._" (**Sang to the tune of the song he played in the movie**) as he approached the two owls once more in a strut.

"Oh glaux, it's that horrid music!" Jutt whimpered.

Jatt slapped Jutt, as he snarled, "Get a hold of yourself, cousin, we can't fail our king, not when our gizzards are on the line!" as the two charged at the Great Gray for the umpteenth time.

On the other side, Nix growled as he tried swinging at the old owl as Ezylryb dodged them and retaliated with a talon punch to his face, pushing him a few steps back. The grass owl was about to take to the air, when he felt two small talons scratching on his back, those two talons belonging to Gylfie. In sheer anger, the Pure One begun to convulse with fury, as he tried to get the Elf Owl off, who in turn, began gripping his back for dear life. Fortunately, with Nix being distracted, it gave Digger a chance to tackle him in the gizzard, causing him to keel over in pain. The grass owl was losing it, he wasn't about to let three inferior species defeat and humiliate him as Kludd did before. This was supposed to be his night of triumph, no one else!

"ENOUGH!" He screeched, as he threw Gylfie off with newfound rage, as she hit the ground with a hard thud.

Digger looked with horror as the grass owl knocked his crush to the ground, as she was dazed, then his horrified expression turned into that of fury as he shouted, "YOU SON OF A-" as he lunged at Nix with fury...unfortunately, his well-intended attack was countered as Nix tripped him with his wing, prompting the burrowing owl to stumble to the ground.

"What? Did I hurt your little girlfriend? Well, I'm afraid she will hurt even more when I end YOU!" Nix mocked with insanity as he raised his talon, ready to pierce the owl through...but then he felt his claw suddenly get snagged on by something and yanked back. The grass owl quickly look to his raised talon to see a satchel (the bag part, at least) caught on it, as it pulled more, prompting Nix to turn around to prevent the talon from being dislocated, as he then saw Ezylryb, who was on the other end of the satchel (**In case you don't remember, the satchel belongs to Alice, who gave it to Ezylryb to help him...it was mentioned in ch 7, 9 and 13**), as he let out a grunt as he pulled more.

Unfortunately, Nix immediately caught onto his plan, and being as super strong as he was now, he merely pulled back, ripping one of the straps of the satchel, as the Lyze fell forward towards his talons, as the grass owl taunted, "Really? You tried to fight me with a bag? And to think Metalbeak was defeated by you..."

Ezyrlyb on the other talon was shocked, as he saw the satchel, which was entrusted to him by an owl whom he had a crush on, lying on the ground broken behind Nix's talon, as he then glared upwards at Nix and snarled, "You will pay for that!"

"I'm afraid I have no intention of repaying a Guardian for a piece of garbage, but I do intend on ripping your throat out!" Nix roared as he swung his claw at Ezylryb, hitting him in the face and knocking him backwards.

"EZYLRYB, NO!" Twilight shouted, as he played/swung his lute against Jatt's head to falter his charge, as he prepared to help his comrade...unfortunately, he didn't see the two cousins (Jatt recovering from being hit on the head), as they dog-piled him, as they ensued in a wrestling tussle.

Nix smirked in admiration that one of his dumb cohorts managed to do something right for the change, as he approached the Screech Owl, who just finished recovering from the scratch on his right cheek, who was trying to get back to his feet as he stared at Nix with anger. Digger, along with Gylfie, who recovered from her head injury, were about to leap up and ambush him in order to save the senior Guardian...unfortunately, as soon as they manage to get to their feet, the pillar shook once more, causing everyone in the room to fall towards the throne room doors, as Digger and Gylfie, along with Twilight, who was now trying to throw off both Jatt and Jutt, were now rolling backwards towards one side, and Ezylryb, who tried to get back up, only stumbled backwards as his back hit the ground once more and slid down. To his horror, Nix used this change in the environment to his advantage as he then charged downward at a quicker speed, and raised his right talon upwards as he brought it down on the old Screech Owl...

* * *

**-4-**

The scarred Barn Owl could only hear the thunder and the maniacal laugh of his adversary as his body tumbled towards the edge of the cliff as he tried to gain footing before he plunged into the stormy abyss of the unforgiving sea, but he could only grab fistfuls of pebbles as he neared the drop. In a last attempt, he stabbed his sword into the ground, hoping it would prevent him from falling. Kludd's idea couldn't have been more perfectly timed as his sword skid along the rock to the point of where it drop, where it caught it, saving the Barn Owl from his untimely demise. Kludd let out a quiet 'oh, glaux' as he then glared up at Skarmoris.

Skarmoris merely frowned in disappointment that the living memory of Metalbeak was still living (despite stripping him of the helm, he could still see Surtr in Kludd's eyes, it tormented him). "_He had certainly improved and show excellent swordsmanship, I'll give him that much...but let's see how he can handle the sky!_"

The Sulawesi Masked Owl spread his wings as he complimented, "I applaud your endurance and skills, Kludd…Metalbeak would have been proud of such a good pupil."

Kludd's glare turned into confusion, as he continued, with a glare of his own, "But now play time is over! Let us fight amongst the skies like true warriors!" as he then flew upwards toward the top of the now-slanted tower. The scarred Barn Owl's expression returned to a glare as he spread his wings as well, and with the pulling out of his sword, he sped after him, flapping his wings as hard as he could to catch up with the usurper king.

However, Skarmoris hid a grin as he glanced back to see the Barn Owl chasing him as he then turned around while flying backwards as he then said, "I've thought of a wonderful present for you...shall I give you DESPAIR?!" He shouted as he then sliced through one of the outcropping rocks, sending it crashing down towards Kludd., but he manages to weave around it.

"Or shall I give you TORMENT?!" He slashed through another rock as it falls towards the Barn Owl, who barely dodges it.

But Skarmoris wasn't finished as he then bellowed, "OR WILL THE GIFT OF ETERNAL SUFFERING SUFFICE?!" as he then swung both his swords out, cutting through a bunch of the spires that laced the side of the pillar.

As they all cascaded down all over Kludd, all the Barn Owl could do was utter, "Spronk..." as the rocks concealed his view of Skarmoris...

When he saw the rocks fall into the ocean, Skarmoris gave an evil smile of triumph, as he had succeeded in defeating a disgrace to the Pure Ones' name, as he continued upwards and said to himself, "So long, Kludd and Metalbeak...and good ridd-"

He was interrupted as he was then bashed through the side of the Pillar of Supremacy as it gave way into one of the unstructured part of the tower as he crashed into the ground with plentiful force. The Sulawesi Masked Owl opened his mask's beak as he spat out a bit of blood, as he got back up to his feet in a instant and about-face to see who attacked him...only to snarl in fury that the owl he thought he finished...was standing in front of him, with the lightning flashed behind him giving him a dramatic backdrop.

"For glaux sake...how many times must I break you before you perish?!" Skarmoris screamed with anger, as he slammed down one of his sword to emphasize his point.

"That's just the thing, Skarmoris, you cannot break me. This 'weak' heart as you called it is what gave me strength. It never gave up even when I had, it helped me pull through the toughest times, as dreams made my brother strong...my heart is what makes me strong!" Kludd declared with pride.

Skarmoris's blood boiled at his foe's unbreakable will, as he then roared, "Well, let's see how this heart protects you from ME!" as he lunged at him once more with swords raised, as Kludd blocked them with his sword, only to be knocked against a nearby stalagmite, but when Skarmoris attacked him once more, Kludd quickly flapped away to another spire, and as Skarmoris swung his blades once more at him, Kludd blocked with his sword once more as he is sent flying through the pillar-laden cave.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl quickly pursued him as he attacked him mid-air as he and the Barn Owl ensued in a sword-fight, as they connected their swords and claw (in Kludd's case, since he has only one sword) many times in an attempt to get a hit in, but in terms of strength and skills, whether from the heart or the power of the Cannabis Regime, they were equally matched, and to Skarmoris's dismay, eating more of his kind wouldn't change that.

Unfortunately, Kludd was soon backed against another pillar, as his talon and sword was locked with Skarmoris's blades, as the Barn Owl struggled to keep him from sending his swords through him. Skarmoris, who would normally smirk at his suffering, was giving a vicious growl as he said, "I grow tired of your foolish games! I am Slayer...Destroyer...Warrior...Master! I am the beak in the darkness, the talons through the night! Mine is strength...and dominance...and power, I AM SKARMORIS, THE SON OF THE DEATHBRINGER AND FUTURE RULER OF THIS DAMN WORLD!" With that loud cry, he ripped one of his swords from Kludd's battle claw and thrust his sword forward...

But then, yet another powerful wave smashed the breaking base of the pillar, corroding not only the right half of it, but inching towards the left, causing the pillar to tilt from right towards a southeastern direction. Regardless, that sudden shift of the pillar prompted Skarmoris to accidentally stab his free sword to the left of Kludd's head. The Sulawesi Masked Owl snarled in frustration as he tried to pull it out, failing to notice that the tremor that they just experienced was causing the cave to collapse. Kludd's fear suddenly got the best of him as he tried to find a way out of here before they both got crushed by a ton's worth of boulders; fortunately he didn't have to search long, as the collapsing of the cave opened up a crack in the ceiling, as he saw more lightnings flashed outside it.

Seizing the opportunity (as it could be his last chance), Kludd then, with all of his strength, shoved Skarmoris out of the way and sent him rolling deeper into the cavern, as more rocks came crashing down, but Kludd paid no heed, as he flew with all his might towards the crack within the caving chamber as with all his strength and a scream, he burst through the crack…

**(-)**

Nix roared as he prepare to end Ezylryb with his own two talons, as he swung downward on the old owl with his right talon, ready to feel the satisfaction of grabbing the skin of an owl and ripping it to shreds...however, it never came.

Lyze, not willing to meet his end yet, caught the grass owl's attacking talon with his prosthetic talon, gripping it tightly, as he pushed against it with all his might, as they stopped sliding.

The general snarled as he began to talon wrestle with him, as he then said to his face, "It is useless to prolong the inevitable, you are out-fought, out-matched, and out-done, and let's face reality, you are past your times, old man!"

The Lyze of Keil wanted to rebut on that statement, but he was focused on keeping Nix's talon at bay, but he knew he was right in the out-matched department, as Nix's claw, enhanced by the Cannabis Regime effect, actually began to have an effect on Ezylryb's metal talon, as it started to bend under the pressure of the grass owl's strength. Ezylryb growled as he was going to be killed if he hadn't thought of something fast, but what could he do?

"SIR, NO!" Digger and Gylfie screeched, as they manage to regain their balance as they saw their senior Guardian in trouble. Even Twilight saw him in peril, as he continued to struggle against the two Long-Eared Owls Jatt and Jutt, as he tried to break out from in between them, but to no success.

Ezylryb heard the concerned shouts as well as the metal screeching of his talon being bent to spronk (making him thankful that he cannot feel pain in the talon), as he tries to feel around with his right talon for a rock or something to hit him with, as his artifical talon was on the brink of being broken off and if that were to happen, nothing would stop Nix from finishing the war hero off. Then...he felt something metallic within his grasp, as he quickly peek down, and held a gasp (to hide it from his potential executioner) as he saw that the 'metallic' piece that he held in his free talon...was none other than the remaining shard of Metalbeak's...Surtr's helm.

This would had to be the greatest irony he had ever witnessed. It was slightly over three years ago that he and Surtr confronted each other at the Northern forests, he being there to help the Northerners defend their home from Surtr's army, while he in turn was there to avenge his comrades and overthrow the kingdom so he could protect his family. He knew from the first time he confronted Surtr over twenty years back that they were destined to be rivals, warriors from two different worlds, both of them loyal to their own faction to the bitter end. Believe it or not, there was a time they did consider each other friends...or at least acquaintances, despite being on opposite ends of the war. In fact, they shared the same opinion of this war they fought...they both wanted to end it before it destroyed them all, like war (as rumors had it) had done to the Others, and they swore (not directly) to each other that once they had the power to do so, they would end this war, and live their lives in peace and harmony, like the way Glaux himself had intended centuries ago...

But, like every promises to make the world a better place had, it was broken...along with Lyze and Surtr's friendship (if you would call it that) that night. Although he had to do his duty to save the Northerners, he knew deep inside that Surtr had done what he had done because he was pushed too far, and he had a funny feeling in his gizzard that the ones they were protecting had a play in it...unfortunately, he realized these feelings too late, as he had already permanently scarred his rival that night, humiliating and hurting him for life.

Ever since that night, despite all the glory and fame he had achieved from defeating him, he had all but despised himself for what he done to him. Many owls called him a hero for what he did, but in Lyze's eyes, it was not being a hero, it was being a tormentor, relishing in pleasure at the expense of someone else's pain. There was even a time where he wished that Maurice and Nyra did ended up killing him for hurting Surtr, or better yet, not taken a role within the battle...but in the end, he would always reassure himself that what he did was right...but that was it. The only reason he accepted being a hero was so he could someday...forgive himself for the pain he caused Surtr and everyone around him...

Forgiveness...that was the thing he had thrived for all his life. He unintentionally ruined hundreds of lives because of what he did to Surtr, as it led to him to becoming the cruel and evil Metalbeak, which in turn led to his death at the hand of his pupil. As proud as he was of Soren for stopping the mad owl, he couldn't help but feel guilty when he died, as he had failed to make amends with him before his untimely demise. The saddest part in this twisted game of life was that this was the _second_ time that he had lost someone because of his own doing...Surtr was the second owl he had let down...the first owl...he couldn't bear to think of him...but, as he thought of Surtr once more, his thoughts suddenly went to Kludd. All this time he had tried to think of how he could be worthy of Surtr's forgiveness (as he never once forgot about their little acquaintanceship they had) when he realize that he knew of two owls he had cherished, one of them being his mate, Nyra, whom even under the name Metalbeak, treated her as one of his sacred treasure, and Kludd...although he know not of the details, he had a feeling that Metalbeak had taken quite a interest in him above all other soldiers, like a father to son, which prompted him to see more reasons behind the obvious as to why Kludd held such a profound loyalty.

It became clear how redemption was possible for the old Screech Owl, as he eyed the shard of his rival's helm, a remaining mark of a once-great owl he once knew, who, even when he succumb to darkness, was a hero to his family, and even after his death, he lives through Kludd (**metaphorically**), who was also a hero in his own rights. The scar Surtr had, the one he gave him, was what made him stronger, sure, it also might had contribute to his insanity later on, but it made him stronger nonetheless, much like the scars Kludd had accumulated from that battle from the fires, as much as it contribute towards him becoming the new Metalbeak, it made him much stronger than any owl he had ever known. Despite all the bad tings he had done to himself and to his family, he was willing to risk his life to defend them against this evil threat, because he learn to forgive himself for what he done...if he could learn to do that, why can't he?

Kludd was right when he said that he was meant for great things, and Ezylryb was more than determined to make sure he was, for him, his brother, and Surtr...he would make him into an owl that Surtr would have been proud of (if he wasn't already) as well as his own father Noctus, that was how he will be able to make it up to his rival...and redeem himself...

Ezylryb's frustrated expression then turned into that of a cocky smirk, confusing Nix as he was close to snapping off his false talon, as the old owl said, with great courage, "You are right, lad...I may be old...but as once said, wisdom comes with age, and I had grown to learn a lot of things...you, on the other talon..." He let out a soft chuckle, as he gripped his rival's shard and snarled, "HAVE A LOT TO LEARN!" as with great force, he swung the shard against Nix's face with his right talon...

Where the shard had hit Nix was gruesome, as it sliced through Nix's left eye, effectively blinding him in that eye forever. The pain was instantaneous as Nix fell backwards, screaming in agony, as he gripped the left side of his face, writhing in pain.

Jatt and Jutt quickly stopped their quarrel with Twilight, who in turn stop struggling, as the cousins merely utter, "Boss..." but Twilight seized their distraction as an opportunity as he blasted them both aside and joined up with Digger and Gylfie, as he stared at the general with shock.

Digger and Gylfie also stared in shock, as glad they were that Ezylryb manage to escape death, they couldn't help but feel a bit of pity for the grass owl.

The old Screech Owl got back up to talons, well for the most part, as his artificial talon was now disfigured, and with a apologetic glance at the now screaming owl, he walked past him as he picked up his crush's broken satchel, and tied the broken strap together into a knot, so it could be carried once more, and with care, placed the broken half of Metalbeak's helm within, as he knew a certain Barn Owl who would want it back. He turned back to Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight with a serious glance, as he then said, "Let's get out of here before something else happens..."

Soren's friends nodded as they and Ezylryb were about to spread their wings and fly through the tunnel where Soren and Nyra along with Soren's family had fled through, but then the two cousins (who recovered from Twilight's last attack) stood in front of the escape route as Jatt said in a surprising angry voice, "You guys are not going anywhere!" as he gave a evil stare...or at least tried, despite being within the army for four years, he still hadn't perfected his evil look.

"He's right! No one hurts our boss and gets away with it!" Jutt snarled, with an attempt of a evil glare, "In the name of Skarmoris and his new world, which we will be in, we will defeat you!"

The four stared at the Long-Eared Owls with a look that screamed 'Really?' as Digger then shouted, annoyed with all the distractions, "For glaux sake, you morons! Skarmoris said that he would have every non-Tytos killed! Have you guys forgotten that you are not Tytos?!"

The cousins were about to rebut when they suddenly stop and realize what he just said, as their beaks dropped. Indeed, Skarmoris did said that he would end all other species that were not of Tyto blood; all this time that they had been serving the Pure Ones, they had long forgotten that they were not Tytos like the other soldiers in the army, in fact, the only reason they manage to get into the army was because the queen, who wasn't as malicious as she was a year back, took a liking to them. Sure there were times that she and Metalbeak (both of them) threaten to put them down, but they always knew that they didn't mean it (at least they thought they didn't). Now they thought of it, they betrayed the ones who actually did appreciate them (although they didn't show it), threw them aside for power...power that they won't be able to have because of their leader's genocidal thoughts.

This realization came to them like a breaking of a window (**cough...How I Met Your Mother...cough**), as it suddenly crippled their thought train. The two cousins stood there, completely shocked by what their new leader's plans meant for them. The four owls looked at each others with uncertainty, as Twilight answered Digger's question, "I think they did."

However, the pillar began to tremble again, causing everyone to stumble a bit, as Jatt and Jutt were snapped out of their reverie as they tried to regain their balance. They were now completely unsure about their career path, especially since Skarmoris will have no need for them, but all they know is that their old leader Metalbeak (the first one) would want them to defeat Ezylryb and the others, so with determination, the two cousins then took somewhat of a battle stance as they prepare to attack the quartet, who in turn were ready to take on them once more...

Unfortunately, the tremor had prompted cracks to travel up towards an over hanging arch that the two cousins and weakened it to a point where it had to give...in which it did, as a big piece of the said arch suddenly broke off, and just as the two owls were about to strike, the large rock crashed on both their heads, immediately being shattered upon them, as the two now dazed owls were now on the brink of collapsing.

"Son..." Jatt uttered, as he felt the world spinning.

"Of a..." Jutt continued, feeling dizzy.

Before either of them could said the last word, the remaining part of the arch fell upon them, effectively knocking both of them out for a little while.

Ezylryb and the others looked in surprise at how their two foes were easily defeated, as Twilight quipped, "Well...that was easy."

"No argument there." Digger agreed.

"I kinda feel bad for them." Gylfie admitted.

"You have to give them points for trying." Ezylryb nodded, as he then stepped forward, "Let's go, Soren is probably worried sick about us."

The three nodded as they were about to continue...but they were halted once more, when they heard heavy panting. The four owls turned around to see the trembling figure of Nix, who had got back onto his feet, but he wasn't trembling from the bleeding scar that was over his left eye now, no, he was shuddering from anger; sheer, unrestrained, boiling anger from the depths of his heart. The owl stared at the four with great hatred as he then got into a charging position, ready to murder anyone in his warpath, as he tried to mutter, but the pain from his lost left eye caused him to stammer, "T-This is not over..."

"Oh boy..." Digger muttered, as he saw the fury in his eyes.

"I have a bad feeling about this..." Gylfie whimpered.

"That lad does not know when to quit, does he?" Twilight said exasperated.

However, Ezylryb was brave enough to confront him, as he step towards him and said, "It is over, Nix. Your cohorts are out for the count and even you don't possess the stamina to fight all four of us. Stand down, while you have the chance..."

But Nix did not heed, as he then spread his wings and took to the sky as he bellowed, "THIS IS NOT OVER!" as he then swooped down towards the four, with claws raised. Twilight and Ezylryb quickly got out of the way, as well as Digger, as Nix came at them with relentless speed. Gylfie was about to follow suit, when she suddenly felt pain in his left hip as she gripped it, as it was bruised from when Nix threw her off earlier, thus impairing her ability to quickly weave out of the way. Gylfie could do nothing but stare in horror as Nix was aiming for her, seeing how she was the easiest prey for him, knowing that she couldn't get out of the way quick enough.

This did not go unnoticed, for as soon as Digger flapped out of the way, he noticed that Gylfie wasn't following him, and turned around, only to see in shock that his crush was in pain, and that the furious bloodthristy grass owl was closing in on her real fast. It was in that moment that the feeling he had felt back at the Hawk's Ravine, when she was in danger, had returned, as he then narrowed his eyes into determination as he then spread his wings...

Gylfie was absolutely frightened as she saw Nix was moments from killing her, as she heard Ezylryb and Twilight's voice, who had taken note that the Elf Owl wasn't moving, trying to tell her to get out of way. As much as she would want to comply, she couldn't, the pain in her left hip was just too great. She was helpless to do anything but braced for the pain that would soon ensued, as she heard Nix's vicious roar.

But, as the grass owl was seconds from claiming his prey, Digger, not willing to see anyone lay a talon upon his love, quickly took to the air, as he sped towards Gylfie as well. Just as Nix was about to attack the frightened Elf Owl, everything seemed to had slowed down, as Gylfie wanted to scream...but then Digger, the one she loved, blindsided him in the nick of time, as the burrowing owl bashed into Nix's un-scathed face with one of his talon with tremendous force, as the grass owl let out a small groan of pain as he was sent sprawling to the ground, as he fell unconscious for the second time that night...

The Elf Owl was dumbstrucked, as she looked forward to see the Burrowing Owl landing right in front of her, panting as he looked at Nix with anger, but seeing how he was now down, he then turned to Gylfie, as his glare turned to that of love and concern, like he did when she nearly fallen, as he looked at her with those green eyes... the eyes she fell in love with...not to mention the owner of such eyes, as she was speechless by his heroics. Digger was just the same, as he gazed at her hazel eyes, those beautiful eyes that he couldn't get enough of. In that moment, as the two owls gazed into each others' eyes, they knew without a doubt that they loved each other. All this time, nearly being killed by a snake, nearly raped by a hawk, and everything else, they had always thought that they were unworthy of each other, when in reality, they were meant to be...so without wasting another moment, Digger and Gylfie connected their beaks at long last...both of them had dreamt of this moment for a long time, and now, as they felt each other's embrace, it was a feeling they longed to have, and any doubt about their feelings were cleared away.

They felt so lost in their world, and the powerful moment would have lasted forever...had not a Great Gray Owl let out a loud "AHEM!"

The two owls pulled away from each other to see Twilight and Ezylryb, staring at them with a half-questioning, half-amused look, as Twilight said, "Digger, Gylfie...as happy as we are that you two had finally came to your senses and admit your love to each other..." then his face grimaced into anger, "THE PLACE IS GOING TO HAGSMIRE AND WE HAVE NO TIME FOR YOU TO SNOG! LET'S GO!"

Digger and Gylfie, as unhappy they were that their moment was cut short, nodded as they joined the two older owls and flew off into the tunnels, hoping to join up with their two other comrades...

**(-)**

Bigg's roar echoed through Nyra's ear slits as she quickly weaved out of the way, as the bulky barn owl smashed his head against the wall, as pieces of it rolled down the slanted hallway into the ocean far below. Unfortunately, Biggs was far from finished, as he shook the rubble off his head and glared at the white Barn Owl with such hatred.

Soren himself was having trouble as well, as his adversary, Wedge, brother to the bulkier owl (or so Soren thought), was wielding his sword with such precision as he couldn't get a hit in, not without risking getting a nasty wound.

Soon, Soren and Nyra were back to back with each others, as the two brothers paced around them in a matter that vultures do when they see a dying animal, just waiting for that creature to bite the dust, so that they could feast on them...well at least in their case, Cannabis Regime has no effect on them, but in the Guardian and Pure One's case, they would be unwilling contributors to their power like many unfortunate souls before them...

"It's no use...these owls are like made of stone, we can't defeat them!" Nyra said in frustration, as she was feeling, for the first time in many years, fear, fear of the beings that stared at them with murderous eyes.

"No...we can't give up, Nyra. There is too much at stake here...if we die now, our world will pay the consequences..." Soren whispered.

"You don't think I know that? But I...I don't know I have the strength-"

"Don't think that! Remember what you said two nights ago?! We all have someone to fight for! Think about the ones you're fighting for!"

Nyra listened to Soren's words attentively, as she recalled saying that two nights ago. To tell the truth, she forgot about it, as she refused to remember her past, but now that she thought about it...she remembered exactly whom she was fighting for. Kludd...Surtr...even though the latter had perished, ironically at the talons of the one she was back to back with, she knew that he wouldn't want her to give up...and Kludd...he was putting his life in jeopardy so she and his family could get away, another thing that made her love him even more. Then she thought of Soren...despite all the bad blood between her and him, she admired him...unlike others she had met, he fought for many reasons, he fought for his family, his friends, his love, and even more surprisingly, he fought for his brother, even when his brother had done things that would be deemed unforgivable, he never stopped fighting for him...not only did dreams make him strong, as he claimed, it was his family...maybe it was time she took a leaf from his book...

Judging from the look on Nyra's face, Soren knew he had managed to lift her spirits...but it didn't change the fact that their foes were still next to impossible to overpower. Biggs, as he watched him carefully, was obviously the stronger one of the two, and seeing how Nyra's attacks did nothing to him, it would take two owls at the very least to overpower him, but then there was Wedge. Unlike Biggs, Wedge was less bulky but more nimble, the Barn Owl knew he could defeat him, but that sword...the one within his grasp, as long as Wedge held it, he would have no chance of defeating him...meaning he has to focus on getting the sword away from him...but in order for that to happen, he would have to find a break in his defense...

From the sidelines, Noctus, Marella, along with Mrs. P and Eglantine within their talons, watched in fear as they saw the two guards closed in on their son and Nyra, as they wanted to do something, but knowing if they did tried someting, it could result in one of them dying, and that was a price they couldn't pay.

Wedge, whose back was now to the family, was about to make a move as he raised his sword to attack, when Eglantine, not willing to see another of her brother go away, just shouted, "SOREN!"

That little shout quickly diverted Wedge's gaze, as he turned around to glare at the family, but Soren, seeing his chance to go for his sword, quickly lunge at Wedge, knocking him to the ground, as they wrestle around, as Soren sought control over the Barn Owl's sword.

Seeing his partner in danger, Biggs charged at the struggling two owls, letting out yet another roar, but just as he was, Nyra, seeing how the big owl was distracted, quickly flew overhead the owl and grabbed onto the owl's helm, her talons clutching around the helm's visor and effectively blinding him. Unfortunately, the owl didn't take kindly to this act, as he began thrashing around to throw Nyra off.

Nyra inwardly smiled as she kept a deathgrip on the owl's helm, as her plan was to have the big owl to waste his stamina trying to throw her off, and when as soon as he did, she would conk him out. Unfortunately, Biggs, seeing (feeling, technically) that the female shown no signs of letting go, he began swinging his head against the wall, all in an attempt to see again. Nyra let out a groan as she tried to hang on, while bracing for pain as her body smacked against the ceiling constantly, as Biggs growled a non-owl growl in frustration.

"Damn it, just let go!" Soren snarled, as he gripped the handle of the sword within Wedge's grasp, trying all his hardest to pull it out, but Wedge, being under the Cannabis's effect, made it hard, as he tugged against him, and soon the two owls were back onto their feet, moving around in a circle, as they struggle for the possession of the bronze blade.

Noctus and Marella, relieved that they were getting the upper hand little by litte, began cheering for both of them...

"Come on, son! Get him, get him!" Noctus shouted.

"GO FOR THE THROAT! GRAB IT AND DON'T LET GO!" Marella screeched at Nyra, shocking her husband a little.

"You can do it!" Mrs. P cried.

"Please...beat them..." Eglantine whispered.

However, unbeknownst to them, Biggs's repeated smashing against the wall was causing cracks to appear along it, as more pebbles and rocks continue to fall, and to make matters worse, a even bigger crack was developing on a segment of the wall that was slightly above Noctus and Marella, and soon, a big chunk of the rampart was beginning to fall out, but the two owls, the snake, and the owlet were so focused on the fight they paid no heed.

Soren, deeply in the midst of his fight against Wedge, began to hear a cracking sound that didn't sound like that of lightning, as he looked around for what could possibly be making that noise while keeping his talon on Wedge's sword, and his heart froze when he saw the part of the wall about ready to come down on his family as he screamed, "MA, DA, WATCH OUT!"

His parents jumped when Soren said that, as he also heard the cracking sound, as they turned to their right to gawk in horror as the piece fallen out of the wall and came crashing down upon them. They were given little time to react as Noctus flapped out of the way instantly, and Marella did as well, but unfortunately, a bit of the rock broke off and nailed one of her talons.

"GAH!" Marella screeched as the sudden pain within her left talon caused it to splay open, weakening her grip on her daughter.

"MA! I'M SLIPPING!" Eglantine cried as she indeed begin to fall out of her mother's talons.

"Eglantine!" The mother realized, as she tried to grab her again, but the little owlet slipped away from grip, as she began tumbling, "EGLANTINE!"

"NO!" Noctus, Mrs. P, and Soren screamed, as the father tried to regain his balance from swiftly dodging the falling boulder, and Soren tried to push Wedge aside, but time was not on their side as Eglantine was moments away from falling to her demise at the hands of the unforgiving waters.

"HELP ME!" The little owlet pleaded out loud as she rolled off the edge, closing her eyes in fear.

But then, she felt something grabbed her tightly, not enough to be uncomfortable, but enough to confirm a tight grip, and soon, she felt solid ground beneath her feet. Curious as to who managed to grab her before she fell, she opened her eyes to find herself standing on one of the columns (that now stood at a 45-50 degree because of the tower's condition) and look upwards to see white feathers, not ones that belong to her brothers nor her parents, but those that belong to someone she knew meant dear to her older brother...she was saved by Nyra, who was looking at her with eyes that she never thought she see in a Pure One (except her brother), they were eyes of relief and love...

The white Barn Owl had took note when she heard Marella's scream while trying to keep her talons over Bigg's eyes. She took even quicker note when she saw Eglantine falling. When she saw Eglantine, she was horrified, even though she was of no relations to her, she did felt a connection to the child because she was a relation to her love, Kludd. Even though Kludd had denied it before and during his time as Metalbeak, while he hated Soren, he still cared about his little sister, and he, no matter how heartless he became, would never hurt her. Knowing that she would have to abort her plans, she quickly leapt off of Bigg's head as she quickly swooped and caught Eglantine (her time hunting and battling had paid off) before she fell.

All Eglantine could say, as she was now trembling with fear that she almost died (for the second time that night), as she said, "N-Nyra?"

"Shh, little one, it's alright, you're okay." Nyra soothed.

Noctus and Marella (as well as Mrs. Plithiver) were both in major disbelief as they saw her soothing their child, all this time, they had feared her because of her evilness, yet she had shown love and loyalty to their eldest son and now, she saved their daughter from certain death. Maybe they had her pegged wrong (they couldn't dare say that it was a ruse)...or maybe Kludd might have actually brought this side of her to light...they didn't know, but they were genuinely surprised.

Soren was also surprised, but he couldn't help but smile...at least he would have, had he forgotten that he was still in a tug-o-war match with Wedge. But to his shock, he saw Biggs, blinking his eyes as he could see again, as he then charged like a bullet at the white Barn Owl, as Soren yelled, "LOOK OUT!"

Nyra quickly looked Soren's way, but his warning came a little late, as Biggs smashed into Nyra into the next column, effectively pinning her by the throat.

"NYRA!" Eglantine gasped, as she saw the mean owl capture the one who saved her, when Noctus and Marella went down to grab her, so she didn't fall again.

The white Barn Owl began struggling under the bulkier Barn Owl as his claws were now starting to constrict her windpipes...she widened her eyes in horror as she realized that the owl was choking her, as she fought harder, but Biggs just kept on tightening his grip...

"LET HER GO!" Noctus demanded as he tried lunging (Mrs. Plithiver quickly got off of him and onto Marella) at Biggs from the column they're on, but unfortunately, Biggs merely swung his wing nonchalantly at him, knocking him back against the column and unconscious for a little bit.

"Oh no..." Soren whispered, as he then started to pull harder on Wedge's sword, so he could save Nyra...but Wedge, growing sick of this game, flung Soren around him two times and as soon as he was approaching the third, with all his might, he threw Soren a good distance across the floor. The Barn Owl smiled in victory as he raised his sword...only to be comically surprised that it was not there, and look in shock at where his sword landed...

Soren looked up from his position, as he was wincing from the pain in his bruised abdomen, as he then saw in surprise the sword that belonged to Wedge, jabbed into a column in front of them, vibrating.

There was a short silence, as Soren and Wedge looked at each other then back at the sword, as they stood there for a second...then Wedge let out a roar as he charged for the sword. Soren quickly reacted as he then dashed towards the sword as well. Fortunately, Soren had a bit of a lead on the Barn Owl as he ran to the blade, but Wedge, possessing more speed, caught up with him as he then bashed his body into Soren, effectively knocking him aside. However, Soren, not ready to give up, quickly blindsided him to the ground as he flew overhead...only to get his talon snatched by Wedge's beak. In frustration, the younger Barn Owl raised his talon as he swung it into his foe's eye, prompting the owl to screech in pain as he let go.

This allowed Soren to get to the sword, as he grabbed it...only to frown at the fact the sword was stuck in the pillar. "Just my luck..." he muttered, as he started to try pulling it out.

However, Wedge (with a bruised eye) glared at the Barn Owl as with a flex of his claws, he took to the air as he planned on finishing his opponent once and for all.

"Sor-Soren..." Nyra tried to get out, eyeing the evil Barn Owl, as she continued flailing under his accomplice, who was choking the life out of her. The white Barn Owl was growing more afraid as the world around her began to fade into blackness...

Soren continued to un-wedge the sword, as he heard the flappings of wings. Knowing that he and Nyra were running out of time, he doubled his efforts to get the sword out, as Wedge started to close in on his prey. "Come on...come on..." Soren growled, as his pulls started becoming slow and deliberate, and the sword started to loosen.

"[ROAR!]" Wedge roared, seconds away from his designated target.

"Sor..." Nyra croaked as she felt her eyes rolling to the back of her head, moments from meeting her maker.

"SOREN!" Marella, Eglantine, Mrs. P, and Noctus (who recovered from being hit by Biggs) all screeched as Wedge closed in.

Hearing those screams, Soren let out a shout as with the remaining of his strength, he tugged the sword out of it's prison within the pillar and pointed it outwards...

A sickening sound echoed through the slanted halls, prompting Biggs to look up in shock, prompting his grip to loosen on Nyra, allowing her to breath, as she started taking in air by the beakful.

Soren had his eyes closed when he turned around to face his enemy, but when he suddenly felt something heavy on top of him, he opened his eyes...only to be met with the eyes of Wedge, who was unable to stop himself when Soren pulled out his sword, and the consequence of his failure resulted in him being impaled on his own sword, going through his heart, as the Barn Owl's life was almost immediately drained from him, as he fell lifeless upon Soren. Not meaning to desecerate his corpse but freaked out nonetheless, Soren pushed one of Skarmoris's henchowl off of him, as he let out a series of pants, lying his back on the column, nearly worn out.

Unfortunately, Biggs look towards Soren's direction, only to see in horror, that his partner...his accomplice...his brother lying on the column next to Soren, and the blood on the sword Soren now held in his grasp...as Biggs's eyes went from dark red (the color for most Cannabis's affected victims) to a normal eye color of light brown, as he then roared in anguish as tears started to fall from his eyes. Soren quickly darted up to see the upset bulky owl, who sadness was suddenly replaced with vicious anger, as he ignored the white Barn Owl he had under his talons and was prepared to rip the one who killed his brother limb from limb...

"Oh no..." Soren panted, as he saw Biggs spread his wings, not paying attention to his family, who was on the column between Soren and him. Biggs was beyond upset, even though his mind was obliterated when he first bit into his first dead corpse, he still held onto his feelings for his brother...and now he was dead...this was unforgivable, in the name of Skarmoris and his brother, he would make his murderer pay!

Biggs was moments away from taking to the sky as he let out a powerful roar...but suddenly, he stop mid-roar, as he felt sudden pain in his abdomen. as he looked down to see an owl's claw stabbing him in his lower body, and the owner of that claw was none other than Nyra, who was now panting heavily, not only from exertion, but from nearly being choked to death, as she said, "I'm sorry...but I...won't let...you hurt...another soul." as she pulled out her bloody claw.

The bulky barn owl wanted to retaliate, but with blood seeping from his new wound, he immediately felt cold as he was about to join his brother in wherever they would go when they died. His sight suddenly began to blur as he was feeling dizzy from the blood loss as he tilted back and forth...

Suddenly, the Pillar of Supremacy began to vibrate once more from it's pillar weakening as Soren and the others held tight onto their columns, but Wedge and Biggs, since the former was now dead and the latter was dying, could do no such things, as Wedge's lifeless form slipped from the column, and Biggs tilted far forward as he let out his last growl, as both of them fell from the hallway and into the sea, neither of them, never to be heard from ever again...

Fortunately, the shaking stop...for now, as Soren got back up to his talons and looked down where the two soldiers of Skarmoris had fallen, and with a nod of respect for the fallen creatures, he quickly glided over to his family on their column as well as Nyra.

"Is everyone okay?" Soren asked with concern.

"We're right, dear." Mrs. P nodded, "A little shaken up, but fine."

"Easy for you to say, Horace (**that's actually Mrs. P's name, no joking**)," Noctus grimaced, as he gripped his back, "Your back isn't hurting..."

"Well, you're the one who tried to attack him!" Marella scolded.

"I was trying to help the Pure-I mean-her!" Noctus explained, catching himself before he said Pure One.

Soren then turned to Nyra, who was gingerly feeling the marks around her neck where Bigg's talons had been, asking, "Are you alright, Nyra?"

Nyra gave a small smirk, "Yeah...aside from the bruises, my talon hurting like hagsmire, and having my life flash before my eyes, I am just peachy..." She sighed, while grunting a little from her bruises.

"Well, that's good..." Noctus nodded, before he realized he needed to say something, "Say, Nyra...Thank-"

"Please save the thanks for later." Nyra interrupted, "All that matters is that we get out of here as soon as possible."

Noctus was a little off-put by her interruption, but she was right, they needed to get out while the getting was good, "Lead the way, then...Nyra." He said with a smile, as he gave a nod to Marella, as he took Mrs. Plithiver back from her, and spread their wings.

Soren took note of this, as he spread his wings as well, and after giving a nod to Nyra, the white Barn Owl gave a nod as well, as she took to the air, as she and the family flew off further into the hallway...

* * *

**-5-**

It was only a few minutes that Nyra, Soren, Noctus, and Marella spent flying in that hallway when they eventually came to a dead-end with a hole within the side of the wall.

"Uh, Nyra..." Mrs. P spoke up, a little nervous talking to a Pure One, "Are you sure this is the right way?"

"Don't worry, me and...my mate had been to this place many times before." Nyra reassured sadly, as she remembered her mate, "Just follow me into the hollow." she ordered as she then flapped upward into the hollow, due to the change within the pillar's environment.

Soren and the others looked at each other with concern as they followed her up into the hollow...

As soon as Nyra stepped into the hollow, she felt another wave of memories coming to her as she remember many good memories of her, Surtr, and even Maurice...but she snapped out of it as she looked around, the hollow was in major disarray with cobwebs and all the works, but that was understandable, it had been more than three years since she or anyone for that matter had been here.

"So, where is this 'way out?'" Noctus questioned, as he grimaced at the untidiness of the place.

"It is just within my mate's old hollow." Nyra answered, as she continued up the slope.

"Old hollow?" Soren asked as he followed the white Barn Owl, "You mean, this was yours and Meta-Surtr's hollow?"

Nyra paused and nodded, "Yes...me, him, and Maurice shared this hollow together for five years. For a while, it was like a home...but now..." she couldn't finish the sentence as she continued onwards.

Noctus wanted to ask who Surtr and Maurice were (**remember, they weren't in the room when Skarmoris revealed himself**), but judging by Nyra's trailing off, he knew that the subject was kind of sore. So the group of six continued up into Surtr's room.

As soon as they entered the room, Nyra was a bit shocked, as the entire room, much like years back, was still cluttered with books all over the place, and even more cluttered with the pillar suffering tremors from glaux-knows-what. Not wasting time, she said, "Our way out of here should be..." she cleared off some books that were over a mat that was now tattered, "right under..." she teared off the mat, "here..." she finished with a smile, as the door was still there.

"Excellent, I am more than ready to get out of here!" Noctus declared as he clutched the handle to the door and was about to pull it open...

"Wait, dear." Marella ordered, as she heard something, "Do you hear that?"

Soren and Nyra stopped for a moment as they listened as well, as sounds of flapping started to echo throughout the hollow, as Nyra grimaced, "Looks like we have company..."

"Get back..." Soren ordered, as his family and Nyra went off to the side, "I can handle this..." as he slid downwards next to the entrance of the room, as he held his sword firm, ready to strike, as the flapping sounds grew louder. To keep his nerves calm, Soren counted inwardly...

"_One..._" The flapping grew even louder, "_Two..._" The grip on his sword tightened and eyes narrowed, "THREE!" Soren bellowed as he then swung his sword at the being that was coming thtough...only to have his sword caught.

"Easy, lad, it's just us!" Soren opened his eyes to find his blade caught by none other than his mentor, Ezylryb, who was looking at him with his trademark cocky grin, "Although I must applaud your pre-emptive striking skills."

"Ezylryb..." Soren whispered, as he immediately lowered his blade, as he embraced him, surprising the Lyze of Keil for a moment, but he merely returned the embrace, "You're alright..."

"Hey, don't forget about us!"

Soren quickly looked behind the old owl to find Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight flying up into the hollow as well.

"Guys, you all made it!" The Barn Owl smiled as he felt a bit of tears come to his eyes, letting go of his teacher.

"Of course we did, lad! Were there any doubts?" Twilight gloated confidentally

Nyra herself was glad that they were here as well, but she asked, "But...what of Nix and the others?"

"We showed those bullies what happen when you mess with four Guardians!" Digger cheered.

"Indeed we did." Gylfie agreed, blushing at her love's spirit, "It is safe to say that they won't be causing any more trouble tonight."

The queen let out a sigh of relief when she took note of Ezylryb's artificial talon and questioned, "Lyze...your talon...it's..."

"Fine, Nyra..." Ezylryb shrugged off, "Nix went a little hard on it, but it's nothing that can't be fixed. I did more to him then he did to me." He smugly added.

"What about you guys?" Gylfie asked Nyra with concern, "You and Soren looked like you got swarmed by bats or something."

"Biggs and Wedge happened." Soren answered for her grimly, but then he sighed, "But they will no longer be bothering us."

"You can say that again." Noctus nodded, as he then eyed the hatch once again, "Say, you four didn't happen to see anyone following you, did you?"

"No, Noctus." Ezylryb answered, "I believe we are in the clear for the moment..."

Unfortunately, the old Screech Owl spoke too soon, as the pillar began to shake a lot more viciously then it had all night, as more lightning cracked across the skies and thunder boomed. The whole room itself began to rock rapidly, as books that were standing still at the upper part of the room began to rain down upon our heroes. The books were no trouble, as they merely bounced off their bodies...but Digger, being the accident-prone owl he was, got pelted in the face by four books in a row.

"D'oh-dee-daw-D'OH!" Digger grunted as each of those book hit him, as he was left dazed and groaning.

"Damn it...Surtr must have been quite a book worm." Ezylryb said as he felt a few books fell on him.

Nyra looked at Lyze oddly and was about to ask him about how he knew this was Surtr's hollow, but she opted against it, her mate and him _were_ rivals, she just figured that it was one of those things that rivals just knew in their gizzard.

Thankfully, the giant tremor had ceased, but unlike many times before, the place was still vibrating...

"Why is it still shaking?" Eglantine whimpered from between Marella's talons.

"The waves must be causing this place to come down!" Gylfie fearfully answered, "We need to get out of here fast!"

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Digger said, while wincing from his new headache.

"Okay, this way!" Noctus ordered, as he then grabbed the handle to the door and opened it, only to be greeted by the strong wind, "Whoa...that is some wind! Come on everyone, let's go!"

Everyone nodded as Twilight went in first, followed by Gylfie (with assistance from Digger), then Digger as they waited around the entrance.

"Ezylryb, you're next!" Noctus shouted, as he lend a talon to help him in.

"Okay, I'm coming!" Ezylryb growled, not liking being rushed, when he suddenly felt his bent talon touching something. He look down to see one of the books that had fallen, normally he would have ignored it, but the name stood out to him, 'The Two Brothers of the North'. The old owl immediately recognized the name as the story that played a role in Soren and Kludd's life as well as Maurice, but what really caught his interest was a piece of paper pressed between the pages, as if it was a note...but given their situation, Ezylryb had no time to ponder it, so he quickly snuck the book into the satchel, as he quickly took Noctus's talon and went into the passage as well.

Marella (with Eglantine in her talons) flapped into the hatch, and following them was Nyra, and soon Noctus was lending his talon to his son, Soren...

"Okay, son, it's your turn. Let's get out of here!" Noctus exclaimed as he was about ready to pull the door shut.

The Barn Owl was about to agree as he reached for his father's talon...but then something stopped him...his thoughts of his brother Kludd, who was fighting a great evil...all on his own. This wasn't right, as much as he believed in Kludd, he knew that even his brother can't take on Skarmoris alone and survive...he didn't care if Kludd wanted him to leave him, he was his brother, glaux damn it, and he is not going to leave him alone again!

"I can't, da..." Soren stated with absolute.

"What? What are you saying?" Noctus asked, a bit shocked.

Soren knew what he said will prompt a major reaction, as he said firmly, "I have to go and help Kludd!"

"WHAT?!" Noctus screeched, surprising everyone who were behind him in the secret passage, "You can't be serious!"

"Da...he needs me..." Soren tried to reason, as he backed away, but Noctus quickly nabbed his talon.

"NO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO US!" The father snarled as he tugged him forward.

"Dear, think of what you are doing!" Mrs. P pleaded as she overheard the conversation from Noctus's talon.

"Soren, please, you can't leave us!" Marella pleaded as she heard the conversation as well.

"Your parents are right, lad! Kludd will be fine!" Twilight explained.

"Come on, we're wasting time!" Gylfie shouted, as she was growing jittery with the vibrations.

"She's right, if we don't go now, we will be ka-poot!" Digger reasoned with a emphasis on 'ka-poot'.

"Lad..." Was all Ezylryb could say as he listened to the father and the son's argument.

"Da, please let go..." Soren pleaded, while trying to keep his voice calm.

Noctus shook his head in anger as he shouted, "NO WAY AM I GOING TO LET THAT HAPPEN! I HAD ALREADY LOST ONE SON AND I AM SURE AS HAGSMIRE NOT GOING TO LOSE-"

"I AM NOT LEAVING MY BROTHER!" Soren screamed in his face, as he pulled his left talon out of his father's talon, tears streaming down his eyes "I won't lose him...not again..."

"Son..." Noctus merely uttered, shocked by his son's reaction, "Please..."

"Let him go, Noctus." A feminine voice addressed him.

The father Barn Owl turned to his left to find Nyra, looking at him with a serious expression, as he tried to rebut, "But...he's my..."

"I know...but so is Kludd..." Nyra reasoned, "He needs him more than we do..."

"I...I don't..." Noctus stammered.

"Nyra's right," Ezylryb stepped up, shocking Noctus (the fact that a Guardian like the Lyze of Kiel would agree with the queen of the Pure Ones), "There are many bonds that we cannot understand, but one bond, the bonds between brothers, is one that cannot and will not be shattered. If the circumstances had been any different, I would have agreed with you, Noctus, but it is not...just let him go."

Noctus wanted to say no...but even he knew that he was right, even though it would hurt him and his mate, his nursemaid, not to mention his daughter, very much, Soren needed to do this. All he could say was, "Alright, son...go...do what you must..."

"Da..." Soren whispered as he faced his father, "Ma..." he turned to his mother, who was now crying, "Eglantine..." he faced his little sister, who expression were that of confusion, "Everyone..." as he look at his friends, his mentor, and Nyra, "I'm sorry..." He apologized as he turned away. However, before he took a step, he asked, "Nyra?"

"Yes?" The white Barn Owl answered.

"If me and Kludd don't make it back..." Soren begin to say, as he didn't want to think about that, but it was a contingency he had to prepare for, "...Please take care of Eglantine..." and with that, Soren ran down the slanted hollow floor towards the entrance.

Nyra was geniunely shocked by her love's brother request, as everyone else looked at each other with uncertainty and sadness. She didn't believe that she was worthy of being trusted with anyone else, especially with loved ones related to the one who hated her...needless to say, she was going to keep that promise no matter what. With eyes of determination, she turned around and said, "Come on, we haven't a moment to lose! The way out is at the end of this path!"

Following the queen's order, the band (the remainder of it) quickly went down the winding tunnel, soon to be followed by Ezylryb, who merely gave a nod towards where Soren had gone, as he hobbled (since his metal talon was disfigured). Nyra was about to go, when she realized that Soren's family was still standing there, just sadly staring out where their beloved had went.

Unsure on how to comfort them, she merely said, "Soren and Kludd will come back..."

Marella merely turned around, when she heard those words, and as apprehensive she still was of the Pure One, she merely nodded, tears still in her eyes, "I know they will." as she gave a sad smile to Nyra.

Eglantine, who was confused as to why her other brother was leaving, wasn't anymore. She knew Soren had a big battle to fight and no one else can do it...but it warmed her heart a little knowing that her bigger brother Kludd would be fighting the battle with him. To herself, she prayed, "_I know you can win, brothers, I love you both..._"

Soon, Marella and Eglantine took off, leaving just Noctus and Nyra (and Mrs. P, who was silently praying for the two of her three owlets she taken care of) as Nyra reassured, "You ought to be proud to have two sons that are willing to risk their life for their family..." as she then flew off, knowing that the father would follow her.

Even though Nyra wasn't listening anymore, Noctus merely said, "I already was..." as he then blinked the tears from his eyes, "Good luck, boys..." and with that, he flew off into the tunnel, hoping to make their great escape...

Soren was just out the hollow's entrance when he suddenly stopped and looked back into the hollow, as he thought of his family, as he then said, with a tear dropping from his face, "Thank you, da...I won't let you down." As he closed his eyes and then he opened them, his eyes burn with fierce determination, as he spread his wings and flew out into the raging storm, as he felt in his gizzard where his brother would be and prayed that he was not too late...

**(-)**

Kludd burst through the crack in the cave with the greatest amount of force he could muster as he was now up on top of the Pillar of Supremacy. As soon as he did, the cave he emerged from collapsed on itself, and seeing how Skarmoris wasn't following him, the Barn Owl let out a sigh of relief as major exhaustion begun to spread throughout his entire body, as he then landed ungracefully on the ground as he fell to his knee.

The whole fight had nearly taken it out of him, as his left cheek bled with a scratch from the Sulawesi Masked Owl's blades, his entire back was raw from being scraped against the wall of the pillar, and the exertion from dodging all of those boulders and Skarmoris's attacks had practically drained him, not to mention everything else was hurting already from being beaten around by Nix and Skarmoris earlier. But as far as he was concerned, Skarmoris was now buried under a bunch of rocks, and knowing his brother and Nyra as well as everyone else, they were probably out of the pillar and somewhere safe. Hopefully, once he had regain a bit of his energy, he could find them and...

His thoughts were interrupted as he was blasted hard in the back. Before he could react, he was suddenly kicked again, as he felt a talon grabbed him and flung him aside. Kludd tried to regain his focus as he quickly caught a glimpse of his attacker...and snarl even more...it was Skarmoris.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl that stood in front of him was staring at him with malice and hatred, as his body, that was once in tip-top shape before he and the others confronted him, was now all bruised and scratched up, even his helmet had a few dents in it. But the thing that made it out of that cave unscathed was his strength, as he had every intention of finishing what he started.

"Kludd, you fool. You think that mere stones would end me? You fail to realize that there are incredible forces at play here, and nothing can stop it." Skarmoris said with a scratchy chuckle, "Although I must congratulate you on being able to hurt me...and for that, you will pay dearly."

"Go to hagsmire..." Kludd spat viciously, as he tried to get up, but Skarmoris kept him in place with his talon, clutching him tightly with his claws, prompting Kludd to growl in pain.

"Is this the pain you felt before...Kludd?" Skarmoris asked sarcastically, as Kludd thrashed below him, "Let me remind you...this time, you won't forget."

Kludd was about to retort when he then felt sudden pain shoot through his right shoulder, as he look to see that Skarmoris thrust his sword into it. The pain was so awful he could hardly get any word out.

Lightning struck once more, as it danced along the clouds, as rain began pouring harder than ever. The wind coursed through the evil owl's feathers as he looked at his adversary as if he was his prisoner, ready to be subjected to sheer torture. A powerful wave crashed against the pillar's cracked base, and at long last, a huge chunk of the base was washed away, as 'Le Pilier de la Suprématie' begun to convulse severely. However, the sudden shift of the tower didn't seem to affect Skarmoris, as he held his sword firmly into Kludd's shoulder, as Kludd kept a stern glare, while resisting the urge to scream in pain.

"You should have let the darkness in, Kludd, then we wouldn't be out here, soaked to the bone...now you are going to die in a world you can never truly be a part of, and you will spend the rest of your days in whenever beings like you go, wondering what could have been...such a pity..." He sneered, shaking his head, "But before I end your miserable life, tell me...tell me what you cherish most..."

Kludd growled even more as he gripped the usurper king's sword with his free talon, not willing to show weakness to the despicable being that stood over him.

"Tell me...Kludd...give me the pleasure of taking it away." Skarmoris demanded, as he smiled at his foe's helplessness.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl's demand prompted the Barn Owl to think...what was it that he did cherished most? His mind was so befuddled by his anger and hate that he lost track of what was important so long ago...but then he remember Samuel's words...realizing what his heart truly desires...and as soon as he remember those words...everything seemed to click. His thoughts went to family...his father, his mother, his sister, his nursemaid...his brother Soren, the one who believed in him, even though he didn't see it...but it didn't stop there as he also remembered his 'other' family...Metalbeak, the owl he had grown to respect and honor, even after his death, and his mate, Nyra, the first owl that ever made him feel like he was worth something. Then he remembered Ezylryb, Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight...even though he wasn't a social person, he had actually grown to like them, maybe love them, despite all their annoying quirks. Sure it seemed like a cliche to him, but all this time, he always thought he was on his own...when in reality, he was never alone, he was loved...

The Barn Owl then looked at Skarmoris, able to ignore the pain in his shoulder, with a look of pity and determination, "You know what, Skarmoris...I pity you...there's not a thing I don't cherish! Not anymore!" He stated, as he meant every word of it, despite knowing he will soon perish.

To his delight, the Sulawesi Masked Owl was geniunely shocked by the Barn Owl's audacity to actually pity _him_! However, the owl's surprise was replaced with even deeper anger as he then said in a dark tone, "Very well...I guess I just kill anyone who hold even a glimpse of you in their memory...but I'm afraid this is the end for you!" He pulled his sword out of his captive's shoulder as he raised it, ready to end Kludd once and for all...but then, during a flash of lightning that struck as the sword raised, a brown blur suddenly cut through the air like firewood, as it struck the wicked owl across his face, knocking him off of Kludd, giving the Barn Owl (quite perturbed by what happen) a chance to roll away, while bracing his hurt shoulder.

"What the?" Kludd whispered to himself as he looked around to see who saved him, as he then saw the being landed, with a bronze sword within his right talon, and feathers of a lightish-brown, it turned out to be none other than...

"Soren?" The scarred Barn Owl whispered, as he knew that silly but always good-natured grin of his brother's face anywhere.

"Yes, brother, it's me..." Soren nodded, as the rain poured around them, as he let out a quiet sigh of relief that his gizzard had managed to lead him to his brother (**please don't ask how, just call it a brotherly thing.**).

"I don't understand...why did you..." Kludd asked, before stopping as he winced from the pain in his shoulder.

"Because...it is like you always said to me before...brothers always look out for each other...no matter what." The younger brother answered, with a loving smile.

That motto...the one that his father taught him shortly after Soren was born, those words had never been forgotten within Kludd's mind, even though he hid it away, it was never forgotten...Kludd could do nothing but return a smile...but their reunion would have to wait, as they both hear a roar...the two brothers quickly turned towards the origin of the roar as they grimaced in fear...

The Sulawesi Masked Owl began to shudder as the owl slowly rose to his feet, shaking his head to shake off the newfound pain, as he then faced the two brothers. Soren hadn't done any major damage upon Skarmoris except of that upon his helm, which now had a open gash around the right eye, revealing a part of Skarmoris's face. The owl however only snarled in cold fury as he saw the two brothers, who in turn took fighting stances relucantly, as Kludd and now Soren's greatest battle was still at hand, as the storm was now at full-force, as the pillar let out a mighty groan thus creating a perfect atmosphere for an ultimate battle between good and evil...

"Isn't this touching? Two brothers, banding together to defeat their adversary..." Skarmoris sneered, as his two swords flipped onto his talons once more, "But it will make no difference...both your fate had been sealed the same as mine...but our fate runs along different paths...your fate will send you coursing towards oblivion, as my fate shall bring me to limits beyond the reach of any mortal! With the power of my father and many others coursing through my veins, and in the name of the new pure world order...this IS WHERE IT ALL ENDS!"

* * *

**A/N: Do you guys realize that Kludd and Skarmoris sounds similar to Cloud and Sephiroth? That, my friend, was on purpose. Well, here's done what ought to be the most action-packed chapter out of all twenty I had done so far, even succeeding chapter eleven. The battle between Kludd and Skarmoris had been inspired by the battle between Cloud and Sephiroth's battle in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, as there are many quotes from that movie as well as quotes from Judge Gabranth of Final Fantasy XII, as well as a reference to Beowulf (whose movie I watched last week in English class). To say the least, I am quite proud with how this chapter turned out...we bid adieu to Biggs and Wedge, bash Nix, Jatt, and Jutt around a bit, as well as some emotional resolution...oh, and there's the epic fight between Kludd and Skarmoris. However, there is still one more fight left to be done, which is the great battle of good vs. evil, of Soren and Kludd versus Skarmoris...to put into simple words, (BLEEP!) is about to get real. I would also like to recommend readers to read TearfulFriend18's newest LotG fanfic, The Blazing Inferno, which is starting out pretty good, as well as blucatcinema's Siege of Ga'Hoole (which I mention before, does not play any role in the story, so it never happened), I strongly believe you will enjoy those fics as much as I do. Well, I hope I did a good job for you readers, and should you have any questions, feel free to pm me. Be sure to stay tuned for the next chapter (which is not Bringing Down The Giant Part III, there is only two parts) and I will try to get the next chapter out soon. So, all that is left to say is...READ AND REVIEW!**

"_When it comes to fighting, it matters not who you fight, what you fight, where you fight, and how you fight...all that does matter is why you fight._"

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated**_


	21. The Darkest Before The Dawn

**A/N: IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT-Just kidding, boy, what a relief that doomsday thing was nothing but bullcrap. I just want to emphasize how SORRY I am about how long it took to get this chapter up, I kid you not, I felt bad leaving all of you in the dark for a month and a day. I just want to say thank you all very much for keeping loyal to this fic. The chapter you are about to read is LONG, longer than all the others as far as I know, and that would contribute to the month of silence (that and life, writer's block, short attention span, and shows I cannot afford to miss). But now I am back, and just in time for the holidays. So here my newest chapter, consider it an early Christmas and Thank the Lord There's No Apocalyse present. Here we are, the long awaited final FINAL battle against Skarmoris. HERE WE GO!**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole...if I did, this story would probably be its sequel.**

**I do not own I Will Not Bow or Breaking Benjamin, but the song seemed fitting...**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl.**

**Note: I would like to give thanks to Synchronized harmony for helping me out with parts of this chapter and to all who had favorited and followed this story during the month's absence. I also want to give a shoutout to my loyal, loyal followers of TearfulFriend18, Crazybird101, jjhatter, Synchronized harmony (again), bluecatcinema, and Vegeta12345 (plus all the other reviewers as well) for sticking with me. You guys are the best!**

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Chapter Twenty-One: The Darkest Before The Dawn

_"I will not bow! I will not break! I will shut the world away! I will not fall, I will not fade, I will take your breath away!"_

-a verse from I Will Not Bow by Breaking Benjamin

-**1**-

Lightning, often interpreted as the clashes of angels in Glamoria, flashed throughout the hellacious skies, and rain, rumored to be tears of Glaux himself, fell upon the unfortunate world below, as winds, as if conjured up by the angels' wings, traveled throughout the thunder-torn skies. The world, plagued by such a terrifying storm of such mass and power, was no place for any owl, big or small, and no one would dare even stand out in weather like this...however, there were three owls who did dared, as a mighty battle was about to reach the next phase of it's ferocity...

There was nothing but silence; horrible, gizzard-wrenching silence, as the three owls stood atop the mighty Pillar of Supremacy, which was on the verge of collapsing as the wave kept beating on the remnants of the mighty pillar's lower body, as the tower shudder, as if in pain and weakness, for it's time was drawing to a close.

Soren looked with fear in his gizzard as he held his sword tight. Fear was nothing new to him, he founded himself in many situations that scared the pellet out of him, nearly being eaten by a wolverine (**or Tasmanian Devil, give or take**), getting kidnapped and taken miles away from home, nearly being moon-blinked, almost being clawed to death by Pure Ones, almost falling to his watery death...nearly losing his sister...the thought of the day he would have to kill his brother for the sake of the Guardians...the last one haunted him every night since Kludd became Metalbeak...but as far as he was concerned, that fear was now gone...but now, his greatest fear was what would happen if he failed to stop the evil owl that he was face to face with...his family, his friends, everyone would perish because of his failure...now was not the time to let fear weigh him down...this was his time to stand for what he truly believed in...

Kludd was feeling just as nervous as he looked at his brother, aside from a few bruises and ruffled feathers he seemed fine. He wished he could say the same for himself, the fight against Skarmoris had left him exhausted and with little steam remaining, and to top that off, he had many more bruises and cuts that made Soren seemed healthy as a horse (whatever a horse was), including a bad cut on his cheek, a peck mark on his forehead, a bunch of scrapes on his back, and worse of all, a stab wound from his now-bleeding shoulder. Fortunately, that wound didn't render his right wing useless, but the fact that one owl had inflicted all of his wounds was intimidating nonetheless. But, as Soren thought to himself, Kludd knew that he couldn't give up, even though he had came to terms with himself, he still remember the Pure Ones motto...the strong will triumph over the weak and the broken will be put out of their misery...despite the actual cruel meaning behind it, he knew that it had meaning...that he had to be strong and he had to stop Skarmoris and his demented sense of reality at all costs...

Skarmoris glared at his two opponents, mainly Kludd, as he felt his anger coursing throughout his entire body...he just didn't get it, how was he still standing? He was gifted with the strength of ten great grays and the speed of twenty elf owls (**Hey, little guys could be fast**), yet he had bruises and scratches all over his body, the most remarkable one being the long jagged scar that was now dried and infected on his chest, not to mention the vicious claw mark that streaked across his upper chest...those wounds were inflicted by the scarred Barn Owl, the same one he defeated without breaking a sweat four nights ago...could it be that what Kludd said was true, that his heart really made him strong? No…that can't be, his heart was weak! He chose the path of the Pure Ones yet he failed to perform the simplest task of taking one's life, heck, he lacked the gall to fulfill what he said was his 'ultimate goal'...to kill his brother...

The Sulawesi Masked Owl then shifted his murderous gaze to his brother...it was mighty petty of Kludd to have his younger brother save him from his well-deserved fate...and it made him snarl more with anger that he dared sliced part of his helm off (**basically, the right side of the visor is now broken off**), effectively ruining the crown that he had since he first started down his path. As he glared at him, he still couldn't understand how his ex-master could have been killed by such a young owl, it made no sense...then again, he remembered what Soren said...how it was dreams that made him strong...

Heart and dreams...those words seem familiar to him…in fact, now that he was thinking about it, the whole situation itself have a feeling of déjà vu emanating from it...as if he had been in this situation before...that simply can't be right, he hadn't even met either of them before he took over the Pure Ones…but when he stares into the eyes of the two brothers...it suddenly hit him…

His own father, the infamous Deathbringer, was placed into this situation before, when he was on his ultimate conquest of all the owl kingdoms, he and his army was thwarted by a temporary alliance between the Guardians and the Pure Ones, led by two snowy owls from the far north. The two brothers were much like the brothers from the story, firm believers in their so-called 'heart and dreams'...and to his horror, he remembered that in the end, the two brothers defeated him…and the saying goes, 'History has a tendency of repeating itself'…wait, does that mean that he is destined to-? No! This cannot be! He is not his father, if anything; he is stronger, faster, and better! He is not going to fail like his father had, he was going to do what he cannot, he was going to rule these kingdoms and nothing, NOTHING, is going to stand in his way, especially two Barn Owls who happens to be related, this was his DESTINY!

The three owls took battle stances as they waited for the other to make a move, as the true final battle, the one that would decide the fate of not only the owl kingdoms but the owl race itself was moments away from commencing. Two brothers, both sent down two far different paths, one of light, and one of darkness, that had intertwined almost into one…and a evil king, whose path was doomed to fall into the dark abyss from the very start…it was no doubt that this battle was destined to happen, but destiny's hand only reached so far…it is uncertain as to how it would play out or who would prevail…the answer lied within the three owls' talons…but this was for certain…at least one shall fall tonight…

A powerful lightning cracked through the skies, as that was all that Skarmoris needed, as he then let out a battle cry and charged forward towards the two brothers with his talon-mounted blades and swung them in a hammer-arm fashion, prompting the two Barn Owls to roll away from each other to dodge the widespread attack. Soren immediately retaliated as he sped forward, with sword raised as he tried to score a hit, but his blade was deflected by that of Skarmoris's left sword, as he then followed up with his right sword as he swung downward, prompting Soren to side-step it as he then tries to head butt him, but his attempt was for naught, as Skarmoris flapped over him, causing the Barn Owl to trip onto the ground. The Sulawesi Masked Owl gave a smirk as he pointed his two swords downward as he then brought them both down on the Barn Owl. However, before he could stab him, he was suddenly headbutted in the chest by another Barn Owl.

The Sulawesi Masked Owl was knocked back a few inches as he jabbed his swords into the ground to act as drag, as he raised his eyes to glare at the owl that attacked him, as Kludd landed in front of his brother, wings spread, and sword at mid level. Skarmoris let out another frustrated snarl as he then charged forward with his swords raised once more. The Barn Owl mirrored his actions as he bolted forward as he swung his sword horizontally, only to met with Skarmoris's as they ensued in another sword fight, but Kludd had a disadvantage as his right wing was aching from the wound on his shoulder, making it hard to concentrate on maneuvering his sword and talon swings so that it repelled his foe's unrelenting assault. Unfortunately, being the merciless swordsowl he was, Skarmoris took note of his hurting wing, and after knocking aside Kludd's free talon and with a dismount of his left sword, he gripped Kludd's right wing, prompting a gasp of pain from the owl, and started twisting it, causing the Barn Owl to scream in pain as he knelt in pain, as Skarmoris smiled at his agony.

At the sound of Kludd's agonizing screech, Soren quickly got to his feet as he sped towards the Sulawesi Masked Owl. Skarmoris merely growled as he flung Kludd aside to meet Soren with his two blades once more (**just so we're clear, Skarmoris is capable of switching his blades on and off his talons on the fly**), as he and Soren exchanged sword to sword and claw blows. But then Skarmoris caught Soren's right wing as he hooked his left blade around it, and flipped Soren onto the ground. But before he could take a breather, Kludd, who recovered from the pain that racked his bad shoulder, lunged at him with a screech, as he swung his sword in a vicious rage, as the masked owl blocked his continuous strikes, but as he did, he began to lose ground as he backed away…this surprised the usurper king, why would he be losing ground unless…he was growing exhausted? This can't be! When he looked at Kludd and Soren, they both looked like hagsmire, both of them on verge of collapsing, and the rain didn't help, but now, he was taking long shallow breathes while Kludd kept the pressure on him, letting out grunts after grunts of frustration as he tried to get a hit in, not showing any signs of giving up. Skarmoris let out a snarl as he shook the thought, there was no way he could be defeated!

The Sulawesi Masked Owl blocked Kludd's next sword swing, he merely smarmed in his face, "Do you honestly think that you possess the strength to defeat me?!"

"No." Kludd answered, Skarmoris giving a smirk, "I believe that Soren and I both possess the strength to defeat you!"

Skarmoris's smirk turned into a scowl as he raised his other sword, but then he heard another screech, a screech belonging to Soren, as he charged at him with his sword raised as well. This prompted another growl from the evil owl as he then deflects his attack with his other sword. But then Kludd pulled his sword away as he attacked him as well, along with Soren, as they both attacked him at once. Skarmoris immediately adapted as the three engaged in a two-on-one sword fight, as Soren and Kludd swung their swords consecutively and in tandem, as Skarmoris continued to block each attack, while trying to get an attack in himself, but with the power of the two brothers against his own, they were evenly matched.

Soon, the two brothers both attacked him from two different sides, letting out a battle cry as the thunder clapped in the sky. Skarmoris looked in mild exhaustion as he then met each of their sword swings at once, locking all their swords, as the Sulawesi Masked Owl found himself caught in-between the two owls, as he struggled to keep them from hitting him where it counted.

However, to keep up his confidence and superiority, Skarmoris laughed/grunted as he said, "You two are no match for me! You are only prolonging the inevitable!"

"It is you that is prolonging the inevitable, Skarmoris!" Soren growled, "Your father had thought the same thing, and look where that got him…it doesn't bode well for you, does it?"

"SHUT UP!" Skarmoris screamed, "I am thrice the owl that my father was! I will not be subdued by two arrogant fools!"

"You keep on saying that you are not your father…" Kludd began, as he tightens the grip on his sword, "But your actions speak louder than words! You let the darkness consume you, you ate your own kind, you seek control over the kingdoms…face it, Maurice! You are the spitting image of your father!"

The evil owl's eyes twitched as he heard Kludd say those words as well as his name, he then let out a roar, as he spiraled his body into a complete circle, swinging his swords and blowing the two brothers away from him, sending them both sprawling across the ground, as he landed, heavily breathing…

"The spitting image of my father, eh?" Skarmoris asked, his eyebrows rose, asking in a disturbingly calm voice, as he then snarled, "When I am through with you, there will be parts of you here, parts of you there, and parts staining the grounds! And when I am through with you two, your friends, your family, and the Guardians themselves will PERISH!"

Kludd, as he got back up, perked up at the mention of his family…as his thoughts went to Nyra and the others. He quickly glanced over to Soren, who was also getting back up, as his eyes were filled with concern. Soren took note of his eyes as he could understand why he was worried…he himself were worried for their safety, only Glaux knew where they were now…

**(-)**

"COME ON! WE HAVEN'T A MOMENT TO LOSE!" Nyra screeched as she ran along the secret passage, as the tower continued to shake and shiver. Behind her was the old Screech Owl Ezylryb, slightly hobbling due to his messed-up artificial talon, and following him were Noctus and Marella, with Mrs. P and Eglantine being hurried in front of them, and the owls behind them were Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight, as they made sure no one got left behind. The group kept moving through the cave as wind continued to blow through it, and within a few minutes, the wind was getting stronger.

"We're almost there, everyone!" Nyra shouted back, "Be ready to spread your wings and fly!"

Then, if on cue, the exit was within a few feet, and soon, Nyra found herself back in the sacred spot that used to mean the world to her and Surtr…as she looked at the opening in the cave, which no longer had the beautiful glow of the moon shining through it, but lightning flashing. Nyra let out a sigh as she remembered one of their conversations a year after their marriage, as a vision of her and him appeared before her…

"_Dear, what do you reckon we will be doing five years from now?_" Her past self asked her mate.

"_I_ _can't say for sure, but there was one thing I had in mind..._" The past Surtr answered.

"_Really, may I ask what it is?_"

"_Well, I have been thinking that we should leave the Pure Ones…Ones…Ones_" The last word of her mate echoed within her mind, as the apparitions disappeared. Tears came to Nyra's eyes as she remembered that night, it was that night that her mate became king…she remembered how much her mate wanted to end this accursed war that had been fought between them for so long, but the Battle of The Ice Claws changed that…it changed her mate into a entirely different owl, an owl who lusted for power and vengeance…to her dismay, she believed that what started her and Maurice down their path, the darkness that had birthed in Metalbeak. Darkness was like a sickness, it starts by festering within a being, and later on, as the being's evil actions influenced it, it was not before long that the darkness grew, and soon it would being to branch out and corrupt other beings that were close to that being, which was her and Maurice. For Maurice, however, he had darkness growing inside of him before Surtr's becoming of Metalbeak, so the darkness only sealed his fate…as for her; she was ripe for the picking. It was not before long that her heart began to give in to the darkness as well, thus changing her into the cruel and heartless owl she is now…or at least was…

She did not know how she came to escape the darkness within her heart; maybe she was more strong-willed than she thought…she shook her head…it wasn't that, it became clear what it was that kept her from ending up like her old friend, it was none other than the owl she served alongside with…Kludd. They were both prey to the predator known as darkness, yet they were what kept the other from giving in completely, and as long they had each other, it would stay that way…However, Kludd and Soren were out there, fighting Skarmoris now…and if they were to win, it is no doubt that Kludd would come home with them, and that brought a question to mind…what would that mean for her? It were no doubt in her mind that Kludd could become a Guardian, Soren and Ezylryb would make sure of that…but for her…she had hurt many of them, even before she met Kludd and even before Surtr became Metalbeak…she just had so much blood on her talons that even she would want herself dead for all the crimes she done…what could possibly be left for her?

Nyra then let out a heavy sigh, as she opened her eyes as fires of determination roared within them, she knew not of what the future will bring upon her…but she did knew that she would not find out if she spent her time wasting on 'what if', she need to keep strong for Surtr and Kludd, to prove to herself that she will not be consumed by the darkness like Maurice had. With that thought in mind, Nyra spread her wings and with a flap of a pair of wings, she took to the air as she turned around to face the cave she exited from, as Ezylryb, followed by Soren and Kludd's family, and the trio came out, and with the spread of their wings (and once Noctus and Marella grabbed Mrs. Plithiver and Eglantine with their talons) as per Nyra's instructions, and they took to the sky as well. With a smirk, Nyra turned about-face and lead the group as they flew out through the cave opening, and with one last look back, the white Barn Owl let out a sigh as it was the last time she would ever see that place again, but then she turned to Ezylryb and Gylfie, who were giving her sympathetic looks, and with a nod, Nyra turned her back on the place she called home for five years, the holder of many memories, good and bad, as she and her newfound allies fled towards freedom…

That cave that served as an escape route was merely a couple dozen feet above and to the right of the main front door that the band only snuck through an hour or two ago, but given how it wasn't a big hole to begin with, it was highly unnoticeable to an un-trained eye. But suddenly, the doors themselves began to shake as it suddenly burst open and out came through it was the remaining part of Skarmoris's army that wasn't caught in that tunnel collapsing nor was posted elsewhere in Talon's Reach, as they saw their next meal flying away from the tower, preparing to swarm and feed…

Digger was the first to take note of their pursuers as he said, "Uh, guys? I think we have evil, cannibalistic, and not to mention brain-dead owls inbound!"

Twilight merely chuckled, as he then gloated, "Bring them on! I can take five of them!"

Nyra looked back and nearly dropped her beak in horror at the army, as she quipped at Twilight, "First off, that is highly doubtful," This prompted an 'hmph' from Twilight, "And secondly, how about fifty of them?"

Everyone, growing wary, looked back as they saw the entire force closing in on them as Gylfie whimpered, "What do we do?!"

"Simple, lass…" Ezylryb said confidently, before flapping harder and shouting, "FLY FASTER!" With that, everyone began to quickly fly as fast as they could, as freedom was not yet within their reach…but sooner than that, they would be in reach of the hungering beaks of the vicious owl army…

* * *

-**2**-

The sounds and evil cries of the army did not go un-noticed as Soren and Kludd, as well as Skarmoris overheard them, prompting fear to stir up in the brothers' gizzard, as they stared off into the distance…until they heard a dark chuckle, prompting them to glare at Skarmoris.

"Well…sounds like my army had found your close ones…it won't be long before they are feasted upon…" Skarmoris darkly smarmed.

"No…they can't!" Soren whispered, as his worries grew ten-fold.

"Oh, but they can…face it, your family is good as finished and nothing short of a miracle can save their impure hides!" The Sulawesi Masked Owl sneered, "And soon, you can join them!"

Those words and the worries for their loved ones was what made the two brothers click, as they felt rage coursing through their wings, as Kludd snarled, "You despicable SON OF A-" the last word was replaced with a caw, and as the anger dulled out the pain within his bad shoulder, he and Soren then charged at Skarmoris at once, surprising the evil owl as he blocked his attacks, but the two brothers kept swinging their blades as Skarmoris continued to deflect their attacks.

As their fight ensued, they began to take off higher into the sky, as the Sulawesi Masked Owl worked to shield his body against the claw and sword swipes of his two adversaries, all of them not paying attention to what was happening below them, as one last wave collided with the great pillar, and that wave was all that was needed, as the pillar at long last began to tip over, beginning it's inevitable fall towards the ocean…

**(-)**

Within the upper training grounds, the room began to groan with a roar and shake with fury, so much fury in fact that it stirred one of the two owl cousins up, as Jatt immediately leapt to his feet.

"WHA-HUH-WHAT?! What's going on?!" Jatt asked as his eyes darted around the empty grounds, when suddenly, a big rock fall right in front of him, causing him to leap in fear, "Oh glaux! This place is coming down!"

Jatt quickly turned to his unconscious brother, who looked like he was sleeping contently, as he then shouted, "WAKE UP, JUTT, WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE!"

"Ma…give me five more minutes…" Jutt mumbled in his sleep.

"Oh for Pete's sake…" Jatt muttered angrily, as he then viciously shakes his cousin awake with his two talons, as he screeched, "WAKE UP, GLAUX DAMN IT!" as it effectively awakens his fellow Long Eared Owl.

"Huh? Jatt? What happened? Did those Guardians get away?" Jutt asked, as he recovered from being wakened up so abruptly.

"I'm afraid we have bigger problems than runaway Guardians! If we don't get out of here, we are going to be buried six feet under!" Jatt explained.

"Oh no! Wait, six feet under what?" Jutt dumbly asked, prompting Jatt to wing palm.

"Enough chit-chat, we have to go! Where's Nix?" Jatt demanded, as he and Jutt looked around for their grass owl general frantically.

Fortunately, they needn't search long as a distinctive groan emanated a few feet away from them, as the grass owl was trying to lift himself to his feet, but his body was aching so much from being beaten so many times that he couldn't find the strength to do so…

"BOSS!" The two cousins screeched as they quickly ran to their superior's side, as Jatt asked, "Sir, are you alright?!"

"Do I look alright?!" Nix sarcastically spat, as his body trembles more in pain, not to mention his now gouged left eye was aching as well.

"Not really, sir…" Jutt stated, "You looked like you got ganged up on by a bunch of Guardians and one of them-"

"SHUT UP!" The grass owl snarled, as he let out another gasp of pain, clutching his battered body.

"Whoa, take it easy, general; we get you out of here in a jiff!" Jatt said confidently, but unfortunately the entire room started to move, causing the two Long-Eared Owls to stumble, and to make matters worse, the entire grounds started to slant sideways, as the three owls started falling backwards.

"GAH! BAD DAY! BAD DAY! BAD DAY!" (**Jackie Chan Adventures reference!**) Jutt screamed as he fell backwards.

Jatt let out grunts and grumbles as he then said between grunts, "We need…to get…out…of…here!"

"WHAT…Sorry…I…didn't…catch…that!" Jutt explained.

"Oh…Just…grab…Nix!" Jatt snarled in frustration.

Following his cousin's command, Jutt, as soon as he was back on his talons from rolling over, he take to the air as he swooped and grabbed the general, who was rolling down the slanted slope with them, letting out growls and grunts as his already-bruised body bounced against the floor, aggravating the wounds even more. As soon as Jutt grabbed him, Jatt manage to regain balance as he flapped up to join Jutt and Nix, but one question remained…

"How do we get out of here?!" Jutt panicked, as he maintain grip on Nix, as the room was moving again.

Jatt's beak opened to answer that question, but nothing came out, as he looked around for an escape route, but with the room shaking, they were both becoming befuddled, and when one is befuddled in a life-and-death situation, panic is soon to follow…

"Glaux, we are going to die!" Jutt screamed, as his eyes darted all over the place.

"Don't panic! The worst thing to do is to panic! WE CAN'T PANIC!" Jatt screeched, unaware of how panicky he was acting right now.

"For the love of…" Nix muttered from Jutt's talons, cursing himself for getting stuck with two idiots, as he quickly surveyed the shifting room for a possible way out, given that his 'saviors' were busy screaming in fear. It was somewhat hard to look though, given how he can now only see out one eye (he was still fuming over that), but then he heard a distinctive creaking of doors swinging in mid-air, and given there were only two sets of door in this entire place, it wasn't hard to know which doors were making that sound. The grass owl looked upwards and around the bumbling Long Eared Owl to see the slowly swinging doors to the throne room, and past them, lightning flashing in the sky.

"JATT! JUTT! THROUGH THE THRONE ROOM!" Nix barked, snapping the two Long Eared Owls out of their panic, as the two owls looked upwards as the room shifted to where the doors were now the ceiling, and relieved that they had a way out, the two owls quickly flapped as hard as they could upward, as they flew through the doors into the throne room.

Nix merely smirked as he cheered, "That's it! Just a little bit-" The grass owl ran smacked into the now sideways floor due to Jutt flying close to it, and that hit was enough to knock the grass owl out once more.

Jutt quickly pulled away when he felt Nix became limp, and look down at the grass owl with a nervous look as he said, "Sorry…"

"Apologize later! We have to vamoose!" Jatt demanded, just as concerned about Nix, but more concerned with escape. Jutt merely nodded, as he, with the unconscious Nix in talon, followed Jatt as they quickly flew out of the falling pillar and to somewhere less dangerous…

* * *

-**3**-

"Hurry up! Those guys are gaining on us!" Digger screeched as the group of nine flapped their wings hard to escape the horde of cannibalistic owls that were now flying after them.

"Geez, thanks for stating the bloody obvious!" Twilight snapped, as he was flying past him.

"Guys! Now is not the time to be fighting!" Gylfie shouted.

"Right you are, lass, less squabbling, more flying!" Ezylryb ordered.

"What difference will it make? We can't move fast enough in a group, and the fact that this Cannibis Reggie-mathing makes them faster than us!" Noctus cried.

"We can't stop now! There has to be a way to get away!" Marella pleaded.

"Well in order for that to happen, we would need a miracle!" Her mate rebutted.

Nyra looked back at the group as they were all voicing their concerns and frustration, as she herself was growing concerned, Skarmoris's army was moments away from surrounding them, and from the way they feasted on their brethrens, they will not hesitate to strike. It was one of those moments when she wished she was still queen of the Pure Ones…but then again, who would want to be queen to subjects that were utterly disloyal to her? She hated Nix for what he done, because of him, everyone else, Wortmore, Uglamore, Stryker, Urk, and Ork, and even the two Long-Eared cousins betrayed them, well at least Jatt and Jutt were reluctant to follow Skarmoris…but she knew not where they were now…

Her thoughts of two of her once loyal men were interrupted when she heard a loud groan, a groan that didn't sound like one you would hear from an owl, or any creature for that matter. All she did could perceive was the sound was coming from behind them, as she turned her body around (while flapping backwards) to see what was making that noise…only to have her blood freeze…it was none other than the mighty Pillar of Supremacy, beginning to fall over everything in front of it and bring them to the bottom of unknown depths of the Hagsfiends' Sea.

Ezylryb took note of Nyra's expression as he asked, while turning around, "Nyra, what are you…MY GLAUX!" He too saw the falling mass of the pillar, staring in horror.

The rest of the group looked at the horrified expressions of the two owls, and curious as to what was spooking them, the others turn their head to see what it was that caused their shock…only to have themselves gaping at the place that they thought they escape…was following them, about ready to throw it's weight on them, as the tower began to roar more as the bending point of the tower itself to break.

The only one who would dare to comment on their situation was Twilight who merely shouted, "HOLY CRUD ON A CRUDDER!"

This was all that was needed to be said, as the group of Nyra, Ezylryb, Gylfie, Digger, Twilight, Noctus, and Marella (with Mrs. Plithiver and their daughter Eglantine in tow) begin to fly faster, not only to escape the army, but to get as far away from where the pillar would land, which even then was unknown to them.

Growls and caws of the owl army still emanated as they kept their eyes locked on their target, as they were slowly but surely gaining ground on their prey…

"COME ON, DIGGER, HURRY!" Gylfie screeched to her love as she saw him lagging behind the group.

"I AM!" Digger screamed back, as he tried to fly faster, but he was losing steam fast, and he looked back again, only to gape in horror, as the pillar was moments from falling on him and the owls. The horror was enough to stick Digger in place, as he just hovered there, staring fearfully at the falling rock as he closed his eyes to brace for impact.

"DIGGER!" Everyone screeched, as the pillar was moments from hitting him…

The corrupted owls continue to close in on their prey, failing to notice the pillar was coming down on them…until they noticed how dark it suddenly became (well darker than usual, as it was night and stormy). Then suddenly, a few rocks broke off of the pillar as it pelted some of the owls, effectively knocking them down in the sea. Curious, the owls suddenly look up, just to have their murderous eyes turned to that of horror…

**CRASH!**

The pillar ultimately crashed down into the sea, creating a loud roar that echoed throughout the entire sea, bringing down all that remained of the entire Cannabis Regime army, as they were devoured by the sea's crushing maw, their voices choked out by the salty water, effectively silencing them for all eternity…

Digger held his eyes shut as he prepared for the pillar to crush him…but unbeknownst to him, he was fine…the pillar barely missed him by a few inches, and it wasn't till he heard Gylfie's voice again as she said, "Digger…"

"Am I dead?" Digger asked, not opening his eyes.

"No…you're alive!" She answered.

The Burrowing Owl opened his eyes to be greeted by the sight of the pillar sinking, as waves crashed over it, swallowing it up like a predator to prey, and as he stole a glance to Gylfie, he couldn't help but let out a huge sigh of relief…

But everyone else was completely shocked by what they just seen…

Nyra just stared in disbelief, as rain poured upon her and her fellow owls. Her and Metalbeak's army…and the Pillar of Supremacy…was all gone…she had no idea as to what she was feeling right now. On one talon, she was completely devastated, what was once her home, what was once her army…was no more. The army that she and Surtr had spent their years trying to build was gone…all of them, now sinking into the abyss… along with the Pillar itself…the place where she was married, the place she met Surtr and Maurice…everything that she knew in the past was now gone…but another part of her could not help but feel relieved…she was shocked to be feeling this way…could it be that she was glad that it had fallen? She didn't know…but either way, she felt like a weight had lifted off her wings, and without another word and a nod of respect for all her now dead comrades, she turned around and flew towards the cliff.

However, the others just stared at where their prison once stood, as Digger, nearly shaken that he was almost caught by the falling tower, asked Noctus, "Did you say miracle by any chance, Noctus, sir?"

The father didn't answer him, as he stared in complete shock that a whole army was destroyed, not at the hand of another army but nature itself…and to make it even more of a shock, that army was none other than the Pure Ones. In his lifetime, he always thought that the Pure Ones would either see the errors of their way and give up their plans for conquest, or be defeated by the Guardians…but never had he wished that a giant rock fell upon them all…he only wished that they would had went out the dignified way…

"Let's get going, the sooner we get out of this horrid weather, the better…" Ezylryb stated matter-of-factly, himself perturbed by what had happened, as everyone gave one last look before following Ezylryb and Nyra to possible shelter…but, even though the army may be finished...there still lied a threat, a threat that posed greater danger than any army could in a lifetime…and he was still living…

**(-)**

"RAH!" Skarmoris roared, swinging his right blade at Soren, who merely did an aerial somersault to avoid it, as Kludd then struck him across the face with his battle claw, prompting the Sulawesi Masked Owl to stumble as he fell towards the sea, and it only took a few moments for him to regain his balance…Skarmoris inwardly snarled as his body was beginning to fail him, his wings growing heavy with the rain and exhaustion, why was this happening to him? For the first time in his life, another feeling began to stir up within his gizzard, not anger nor sickness…but fear...glaux-awful fear…something he shouldn't feel, he was an owl gifted with the power that was once his father…yet it was failing him…he knew that he can't keep this battle up for long, even an owl like himself have a limit, and for the first time in his time as Skarmoris, he was at that point.

"_This is bad…real bad…how can I possibly be failing? The darkness should be making me stronger…then why am I so glaux damn tired? Could it be that…Kludd and Soren are truly stronger than me? NO! This cannot be! I am Skarmoris…and I will prevail!_" Skarmoris thought to himself entirely, as he glared at the two brothers who were closing in on him, with swords raised…he knew that the only way to take these two pests out for good was is with force…and it just so happened that he possessed an army, two of them being his loyal servants. Sure it was dishonorable to hide behind his army, but to hagsmire with it, honor is another word for weakness, weakness he refused to show! With an evil smirk, he opened his mask's beak, and prepared to let out a powerful screech that will beckon all his soldiers to his side, no longer caring about the runaways, as he knew in the end, that no one would be able to escape him…he arched his head upwards, and screeched "KREEEE-!"

**CRASH!**

He was interrupted mid-roar as that sound emanated like a volcano had erupted, stopping him as well as the two brothers in their tracks as the noise continued to echo throughout the sky for a minute. As soon as it stopped, Skarmoris was perturbed as to what made that loud sound…but now it was silence…nothing but the clapping of thunders and the crashes of the waves…but oddly…no owl screeching? How could that be? The only reason that there would be no owl screeching was if…his blood froze, as he looked down reluctantly…only to look in horror…

The Pillar of Supremacy…one of the Pure Ones' existing sacred grounds…was now nothing more than a pile of giant rubble, swallowed up by the unforgiving waves of the Hagsfiends' Sea, leaving no trace of their old home…and, as he looked around, there were no owls in the vicinity as far as the eye could see, aside from himself and his two foes, but as he looked at where the pillar had fallen…it became obvious what had become of them…but Skarmoris shook his head as he whispered, "No…no…no…"

Kludd was equally shocked, not only he saw the Pillar, a monument that stood for centuries, suddenly be erased…but judging from the absence of the Cannabis Regime army…an army that used to be under Kludd's control, even he could see what had happened. He remembered being so angry for betraying him and Nyra and had intended on punishing them when he was back in power...but this was not what he wanted at all…the army that Metalbeak had commanded…he commanded was now gone…although they were corrupted by Skarmoris, he couldn't help but feel a bit of sadness…but he maintained focus on the Sulawesi Masked Owl…

"My glaux…" Soren uttered, as he was horrified by the fate that had befallen the owls…and then his thoughts went to Ezylryb and the others, did they make it? Or are they…? He shook his head of the horrible thought; there was no way that they would be…well, it is highly…Soren shook his head again, they were okay, he just knew it within his gizzard…but then concern had risen as he too looked at the usurper king…

Skarmoris was still in complete denial, as he saw no trace of his army at all, as his voice escalated in volume, "No…No…NO!" He finally screamed, as he quickly went downwards towards where the Pillar was, much to Soren and Kludd's shock, as they followed him downwards…

As soon as he was within screaming distance of where the tower had fallen, he screamed as if he was insane, "ARMY! TO MY SIDE!"

No one answered…

Frustrated, the Sulawesi Masked Owl let out the screech that he was about to issue before he was interrupted, "KREEEEEEEEE!"

There was still no answer, except that of the waves crashing…

The evil lord did not believe it…his army can't be dead! They had a chance to destroy the Guardians, and take over the kingdoms…and it was taken away because of a GLAUX DAMN ROCK! No…there still had to be someone living…there just got to be! Without wasting another moment, he let out another screech in hope that a few of his men to come to him…but still, no one came…in fear and frustration, the owl kept alternating between his screeches and screaming, "SOLDIERS!" as he flew around where the pillar collapsed…

Watching this pitiful scene were the brothers, as they landed on a nearby spire. Kludd wanted to end him right here and now while he was distracted…but he couldn't, maybe it was his brother's presence that stopped him, or maybe his own heart letting go of all the darkness he had accumulated, he didn't know. Soren was thinking the same thing as well, according to Guardian's honor, it is wrong to strike upon a foe when he is down…and judging by the desperateness of the evil owl's voice…he was broken…

Skarmoris let out another screech before a sudden gust of wind blew him against another spire. The evil owl let out a groan, his entire body now aching, as he looked down at the sea in total disbelief, as he said to himself, "No…this cannot be..."

"It's over, Skarmoris..." Soren stated, as the Sulawesi Masked Owl looked at the two Barn Owls, "You had lost."

"No." Skarmoris denied, "It is not over!"

"Will you just give it a rest?!" Kludd asked, stepping past his brother, "You have no kingdom! Your entire army is decimated!"

"I can gather together another army!" The Sulawesi Masked Owl rebutted, "Me, Biggs, and Wedge can easily-"

"Biggs and Wedge are dead." Soren interrupted, "Me and Nyra made sure of that." This prompted a surprised look from Kludd, but an even more surprised look from Skarmoris.

"What?!" The evil owl screeched, how could two normal owls best his two best soldiers? That was impossible! There had to be someone left! "Then I have Nix and the-"

"Lyze and the others had taken care of them." Soren explained, although he wasn't sure whether they were living or not, he was certain that they weren't around to help their king, "There is no one left to help you! Please, if you had any honor, you will just fly away!"

The evil owl was muted; he couldn't find a voice to say anything, as exhaustion consumed his body, causing him to grow weary. This was unbelievable, he had been waiting for his moment of triumph for a long time, the moment where he would take over the owl kingdoms and rule it, unlike his father had failed to do so before, and hopefully, Nyra would have become his mate, the night he would achieve his destiny...but that didn't happen...not of it had or will happen...he was without a army to command, a fortress to roost, everything he had was reduced to nothing...like he was three years ago...he was truly alone.

However, his tiredness began to suddenly grow worse, as his body began to rock forwards and backwards as he tried to keep his focus on the two Barn Owls...this can't be the end for him...it just couldn't...but his body thought otherwise, as he suddenly lost his footing...

Soren and Kludd both gasped as the Sulawesi Masked Owl fell towards the sea...they knew Skarmoris was feeling defeated...but to fall on his own accord? They didn't think he would do something like that...

The evil owl was quickly approaching his end as he descended towards the sea, not even attempting to try and spread his wings. For the second time in his life, he was about to be grasped by the hands of death himself...and this time, there is no one to save him from his horrid fate...the only thing he could think of, as he was falling into the wretched jaw of the unforgiving sea, was none other than his father. Despite his seething hate for him, he felt...ashamed...that he had failed to even begin his conquest...was what his father said about him when he was only a hatchling was true? That he was weak? Skarmoris closed his red eyes, which now turned back to silver as he embraced his death, as he said his last words...

"Father...I have failed you. I am no king of the Tytos. You must find another. One who might realize your ambitions...for I can fight no longer..." Skarmoris whispered, as tears...tears that came from the half where he was known as Maurice, begins to drip from his eyes...but then, a familiar chuckle...a chuckle he hadn't heard for three years, began to emanate within his head, as the voice belonged to none other than the being that granted him tremendous power...it was the Deathbringer...well, the being that took his form...

"_Oh, son, they are fulfilled beyond your knowing..._"Deathbringer's voice chuckled, "_The die is cast, the transfusion of darkness, complete. From the world of the Impures you shall transcend. You shall not tread this path alone. Together we go, come..._"

"_What are you talking about?_" Skarmoris asked within his mind, "_I do not have the strength to fight anymore..._"

Deathbringer's voice let out another laugh of insanity, "_I had waited centuries for this night, the night in which I shall finally live again! Tonight will be the night that we become __**ONE!**_"

Skarmoris's eyes suddenly darted open as his body began to writhe in pain, letting out blood-curdling screams as his entire being convulsed. "FATHER! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME?!" He cried, as he felt his own heart was being crushed, if it was being squeezed to nothingness by an invisible talon.

"_Do not fear, Skarmoris...I am going to heal you...from the ashes of your pitiful existence, you shall rise as the ultimate executioner of all Impures...and together, we shall rule over __**ALL!**_"

The Sulawesi Masked Owl let out another shrilling cry as a dark aura raveled itself around the owl, and with his eyes winced shut; he could only hear the pounding of his aching heart as it began to slow to a near halt. As he was about to hit the water, his father's voice echoed once more, "_Give into the darkness...and you shall be reborn..._"

Soren and Kludd looked down towards where Skarmoris had fallen; still not believing what the evil owl had done to himself...

"I can't believe it's finally over..." Soren whispered, "We did it, Kludd...we beaten Skarmoris..."

Kludd said nothing as he felt the rain poured upon him, but all he could do was let out a huge sigh of relief as he knew that Skarmoris would never hurt anyone he loved ever again, that he could finally...finally...this prompted a frown from Kludd...what was left for him? He could consider himself no longer a Pure One...but like Skarmoris had said to him, he was trapped between two worlds...

Before he could think any further, he felt a tap on his shoulder, as he then looked to Soren, who gave him a slight smile, as he said, "Come on...let's get out of this rain before we catch a cold..."

The scarred Barn Owl returned a smile as he then spread his wings...he know not of what he was going to do...but at least he knew he wasn't alone...with that, the two Barn Owls took to the sky towards the cliffs, as they figured if anyone would want to find shelter, their family and friends would go there...

But then…before they could get any farther, a sudden blur burst out in front of them, immediately surprising the two brothers as they stumbled backwards in the sky. Kludd was quickest to recover despite his hurt shoulder as he caught a glimpse of what had surprised them...only to have his blood run cold as the being that stood (or hovered) in front of them...was none other than Skarmoris...but something was different about him...

Soren, as soon as he recovered, was also shocked as he saw the owl, as he quickly looked down towards the sea and back at the owl as if he was seeing things, "How…? What…?" He stammered, as the evil owl just hovered there…

Skarmoris however was silent, as his body was just flying there, not paying attention to the awful weather around him. The most disturbing part was his eyes…they were closed; as if he was deep in thought…little did anyone know of what had happened to the owl…

Kludd and Soren looked at each other in fear, as the scarred Barn Owl, gathering his courage, approached the usurper king, as he then asked, "Skarmoris?"

But the evil being did not answer, not out of sheer ignorance, but of an even graver matter, as the Sulawesi Masked Owl then opened his eyes, effectively shocking the two brothers…the owl's irises had underwent a horrific change, for the owl's eyes no longer were of a silver color…even worse, it was not of red, either…Skarmoris's eyes were now that of gold…and not even the natural kind that most owls (Metalbeak included) possessed…these eyes were those of that you would find in dark folklores, describing an unholy beast that slaughtered many…

"What in glaux's name?" Soren gasped, as he was slowly backing away.

The owl that hovered before them was looking at the two brothers in such an ominous way, like an executioner standing over a convict, ready to take their lives without even a shred of emotion. The darkness that had welled up within the evil owl's soul had finally succeeded in what it had set out to do when it had first begun to grow…for six years, the dark being had fed off of his hate, jealously, anger, and greed, it's embodiment growing with each horrid act and thought, all the while breaking Skarmoris's will so that in hope of one day, it would finally break…which it had. One of the greatest emotion that darkness loved to feed off of was fear…when Skarmoris had reach his awful realization of how alone he was, fear had struck his heart, breaking him wide open for darkness to fulfill it's ultimate purpose…to consume him and assume complete control over his entire being…he was no longer Skarmoris…he was now no more than a empty vessel for the darkness within him…the same darkness that had claimed his father so long ago…he was now one of the most feared beings that an owl would have the displeasure of meeting…his name now was that of the infamous being that had terrorized this world centuries back…the **Deathbringer **was now **reborn…**

To mark his true transformation, Skarmoris (or Deathbringer) let out a powerful roar, a roar that sounded unlike anything anyone had ever heard before, a roar so vile that it caused the storm that was raveling around them to unleash its full might, as lightning began to strike constantly all around, rain coming down even harder, and a mighty gale rushed through the two brothers, as they both winced in pain from the powerful screech…

* * *

-**4**-

The two brothers weren't the only one afflicted, as the roar made it ways to the ear slits of Nyra and the other owls, for they all winced in pain…

"GAH! WHAT IS THAT AWFUL SOUND?!" Digger cried, while shaking his head in pain.

"I DON'T KNOW! BUT I DON'T LIKE IT!" Gylfie screeched.

"HERE I THOUGHT TWILIGHT'S MUSIC WAS AWFUL!" The Burrowing Owl yelled.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Twilight snarled.

Eglantine was taking it harder, as the sound was not only loud but it was frightening, as she started whimpering, "Please make it stop…"

"It's alright, dear, it will be okay…" Marella tried to soothe, but the roar made it hard even for her to remain calm.

"Ezylryb, what is that sound?!" Noctus asked.

Ezylryb didn't answer, not because he didn't hear him or was ignoring him, but because he was focused on the sound…his heart instantly jumped when he heard it…the last time he had ever heard a sound like that was three years ago...when he was being stared down by two angry Pure Ones, looking at him with eyes of the bloodiest red and of sheer hatred, and of the greatest irony, it was from the white Barn Owl that was leading them. Although he no longer held hate towards her, he could never forget that horrid screech, it's sound was like listening to the cries of the tortured, the screams of the murdered, and the laugh of the truly wicked...but the roar he was hearing now...it was worse..._way_ worse...and knowing that there were only three owls out there, it was not hard to know what made that sound...Skarmoris...

Nyra was suffering the worst of everyone, as the agonizing roar echoed through her ear slits. This roar sounded nothing like she had ever heard in her life...except...her eyes widened, this sound sounded similar to her own special screech she used to call the bats and her soldiers...but it also sounded like the screech she made the day Surtr lost his beak...did she really sound like that? She did know that Maurice had that condition with his eyes as well as she did, but...Maurice had succumbed more to the darkness than she did...what do become of owls like her when your heart was completely enveloped by darkness?

Before she could think any further into it, a powerful gale suddenly blew through the owls, so powerful in fact that it caught the wings of the seven flying owls...and send them hurdling.

"GAH!" The whole group screeched, as the wind caused all of them to stumble as it carried them a couple feet. Fortunately, they were not far from the cliffs, as Nyra, Ezylryb, Digger, Gylfie, Twilight, and Soren and Kludd's family were sent sprawling across the grounds of the cliff and colliding against the dead trees that laced around the cliffside, leaving them all dazed for a moment…

**(-)**

Meanwhile, a few feet to the left of where the group was, Jatt and Jutt were busy trying to hightail it out of there with their general in tow…

"COME ON! FLY FASTER!" Jatt ordered, with a tense of fear within his voice.

"If you don't mind me asking…WHERE ARE WE GOING?!" Jutt shouted back, while keeping grip on the unconscious grass owl.

"ANYWHERE BUT HERE!" Jatt answered, "WE NEED TO GET AS FAR AWAY FROM THAT OWL AS WE CAN!"

"Relax, Jatt. It's not like Skarmoris is going after us!" Jutt said, trying to calm his cousin's nerve, "Besides, who would be dumb enough to chase-"

Before Jutt could finish that question, a loud roar emanated throughout the skies, as lightning began striking at a faster pace.

"What…was…that?" Jatt asked fearfully.

"You don't think that is…?" Jutt was about to question Jatt, when suddenly, a powerful gust was unleashed, immediately sweeping the two (three counting Nix) owls up in its grasp, and sending them flying at a high velocity towards some trees on the cliffside.

"YIKES! STOP, STOP, STOP!" Jatt screeched, trying to slow down mid-air, but the wind held strong, and it wasn't before long when the two saw where they were going to crash: right into the ground.

"NO, NO, NO, NO, NOOO!" Jutt bellowed…

**CRASH!**

The two Long-Eared Owls face-planted into the ground, skidding a bit as they tumbled and ran smack dab into a dead tree. Nix, who was immediately released from the talons when Jutt hit the ground, was also sent rolling across the ground, although not as far, as he softly rolled up against the trunk of a dead tree, but was still unconscious…

Before the two Long Eared Owls joined their general in their forced slumber, Jatt weakly remarked, his voice muffled by his face being smashed into a tree, "I think…I chipped…my beak…" as the two owls suddenly fell backwards, leaving them unconscious yet again.

* * *

-**5**-

As soon as Skarmoris finished his roar, he returned his sight to the two brothers, as he then flipped his two silver blades onto his talon once more, showing that he was _far_ from finished.

"I don't understand…he should be dead…" Soren whispered, still not believing the sight of the Sulawesi Masked Owl, but was more off-put by his yellow eyes, "And why is his eyes yellow?"

"I don't know, brother," Kludd admitted, as he took a fighting stance, himself quite perturbed by the owl's new irises, "But I do know that we beaten him once, we can do it again!" He declared in a prideful manner.

Unfortunately, Skarmoris gave a demon-like smirk as he then held his two swords and pointed them at the brothers…then something shocking happened: his swords suddenly began to merge…as sounds of clicking were made, the handle of Skarmoris's left sword was relocated to the left side of the sword's lower base, the tip of the other sword parted open, as it then attached to where the hilt of the left sword was. Soren and Kludd look in shock, as his two swords became one long blade of silver (**Think of Sephiroth's sword Masamune, except proportional to an owl's size**)…

"Well that's different." The scarred Barn Owl quipped slightly in fear.

However the Sulawesi Masked Owl maintained his awful smile, he then reared his wings, as bits of clouds began to ravel itself around them…

"As is that!" Soren shouted in fear.

Without warning and with an 'hmph', the Sulawesi Masked Owl suddenly threw his wings forward, releasing the clouds that built around his wings. Kludd and Soren immediately flew away from each other to avoid the attack...but they were not the intended target, as the dark mist suddenly began to shroud all around the three owls, blocking out the view of everything around them, thus trapping all of them within a forbidden fog...

As soon as Kludd turned to face Soren, he looked in horror, as he no longer sees his brother...in fact; he didn't see Skarmoris as well. The fog that had spread around them practically reduced visibility to near zero, heck, he could barely see his wings in front of him...

Confused and shocked by his brother's absence, he called, "SOREN?! SOREN, WHERE ARE YOU?!" There was no answer, much to the scarred Barn Owl's dismay, as he felt the fear in his gizzard return...even worse, he began to feel sweat permeating from him, despite how soaked he was from the rain that still poured through the shroud that was cast upon them...silence...one of the world's most feared sounds that isn't even a sound in it's own right...Kludd observed the area around himself, hoping he could find his brother...when he suddenly saw a black silhouette...

"Soren?" Kludd asked with a bit of hope in his voice...before he suddenly saw a glint of silver flashing, running his blood cold, as Skarmoris burst out of the fog with his augmented blade raised as he charged at the scarred Barn Owl, with a demon-like screech. Kludd had little time to dodge as he quickly barrel-rolled out of the Sulawesi Masked Owl's path, barely dodging the black-winged owl's attack before he disappeared into the fog once more.

Kludd straightened himself, panting from nearly getting severed in two, as he tried to see where his adversary had went, but it was completely quiet again...knowing that Skarmoris was out there, the barn owl took to a fighting stance, holding his sword up as he rotated from his spot, his heart beating faster as he tried to cover his blind spots, but honestly, how would one go about protecting oneself within a seemingly endless cloak of darkness? The young Tyto Alba knew not of this answer, his eyes darting left and right, steeling himself for the next attack, slowly suffering from the heart-pulsing suspense gathering in the midst...

Suddenly, a powerful screech emanated from behind him, prompting the barn owl to suddenly dive as Skarmoris swung his sword in a wide arc and seeing how he missed, the evil owl let a deep grunt as he dissipated into the clouds again...

The Barn Owl continued diving, knowing that remaining in one place was far from being a good idea, and it seemed to be working as he hadn't seen Skarmoris returning to attack him...yet, but suddenly, pain surged through his head, as a sinister chuckle started to echo through the clouds...and an ominous voice spoken...

"**_It is futile to run, Kludd...you are only delaying the inevitable..._**"

"Skarmoris?!" Kludd asked, as he shook his head in pain and continuing his descent.

"**_Not exactly, Skarmoris had become no more than a vessel for me to command..._**"

"If you are not Skarmoris, then what happened to him?! What did you do to him?!" The scarred Barn Owl demanded, as he pulled up and began darting forward through the conjured mass of haze, eyes still wincing in pain.

"**_Oh, I had done nothing...it is Skarmoris that had let me into his heart, allowing me to feed off his dark emotions...like a flower I had blossomed, the boy had grown to become my puppet, serving my every whim...but you, you had manage to break him...and when he did, I was given the chance to live once more...Skarmoris is now damned to spend the rest of his days in solitude of his own mind, as I am free to finally rule this world like I should have many centuries ago..._**"

"What?!" The young Barn Owl exclaimed, not understanding what 'Skarmoris' was speaking of, "What do you mean by 'live once more'? Just who are you?!"

"**_My, you certainly ask a lot of questions...and I cannot help but feel hurt that you do not remember me..._**"

"Should I remember you?!" Kludd snapped as he continued flying forward, trying to find a end to this endless fog...

"**_Of course...I am the slayer of the Impures...the destroyer of all orders...the warrior that brings the mightiest to their knees...the master of death itself...my name is of no importance...but my title...it's very name strikes fear into the heart of many...a name fitting for the grand executioner of all dubbed unfit to exist in this world...I am...the Deathbringer..._**"

Kludd's eyes widened at the name, as he began shaking his head, "No…no…you can't be him…the two brothers killed you…"

"**_Oh please, all that those fools had accomplished was destroying the host I had possessed…they should have known that you can NEVER kill owls like me…_**"

"Owls like you?" Kludd asked, still in disbelief that he was face to face with one of the most infamous beings on mother Earth.

"**_Yes…we are the parasites within your mind, the leeches of your soul, the bringers of torment, and the denizens of darkness…our kind's name had been lost in the passage of time, but had been feared no less by mortals themselves…we are the beings your kind calls…the hagsfiends…_**

"Hagsfiend?!" The scarred Barn Owl screeched, he had remembered his father telling him of such creatures, they were what the Others used to call demons, once angels of Glaux who had defected from his teachings and had been struck down by the other angels and sent down to Hagsmire, a place of eternal suffering…but as far as he and anyone else were concerned, they were a myth, they can't exist, beings as evil as them cannot possibly have a place in this world!

"No…it can't be…there can't possibly be…GAH!" Kludd snarled, before his head began burning even more in pain, prompting him to let out a scream.

"**_Oh but it is Kludd…don't you feel me? Don't you hear my voice within your head? Owls of your heritage and us hagsfiends are connected…because all Tytos had descended from our kind for eons…and it only a matter of time before you mortals returned to your true roots and embrace the power of Nachtmagen!_**"

"Shut up!" The scarred Barn Owl demanded, trying to ignore the pain within his head, as his heart began beating faster hearing the term 'Nachtmagen', he knew not of what that was, but he didn't want to know, "You…are…not…real!" He tried to get out as the pain was becoming almost unbearable…

"**_But I am real…I had been real for ages…allow me to demonstrate how real I AM!_**"

And with that roar, a lightning bolt suddenly struck in front of Kludd, partially hitting him, as the Barn Owl began to roil in pain from electricity surging through his body, and with the combined pain of the Deathbringer's influence and the jolt of lightning circulating through his body, Kludd let out a screech of sheer anguish…then Skarmoris/Deathbringer burst out of the fog once more, intending on finishing Kludd off once and for all…

**(-)**

Nyra lifted her head slowly as her body was aching all over. She shook her head as she got back onto her feet after being tossed by the sudden strong wind, and looked around to find the others were recovering from the sudden blast of wind as well…she let out a sigh of relief that they were okay…but then her head started to hurt…so much in fact that she gripped it and was letting out painful grunts…

"Nyra? Are you okay?" Gylfie asked with concern as she returned to her feet.

"I don't know…" The white Barn Owl grunted as she tried to make the pain stop, but it was unrelenting, forcing her to her knees… "My head suddenly started hurting all of the sudden…"

"Oh dear, maybe Ezylryb has something in his satchel…"

"I don't know…" Nyra admitted, "It feels like someone is messing with my-GAH!" Her head ached even more…

Ezylryb's head jolted towards Nyra as he saw the once-evil queen in distress, as he slowly got back on his talons and asked, "Nyra, what's-" he stopped as his eyes caught a glimpse of something horrifying, "What in glaux's name?"

The two females looked at the old Screech Owl when he made that exclamation, and noticing that he was looking at something, Nyra and Gylfie turned around, only to drop their beak in shock of what they were seeing…

Where the Pillar once stood, and where the three owls were battling, a gigantic mass of thundering clouds had gathered, as flashes of lightning was visible through it's many layers…and it seemed to be growing bigger and bigger by the moment…

Digger and Twilight were the next to wake up, as they heard thunder continuing to boom in the skies and felt rain soaking their feathers…

"What are you guys yapping about-what the hagsmire?!" Digger questioned before yelping at the sight of the giant storm.

"Digger, what is-sweet mother of Glaux!" Twilight asked before jumping in surprise as well, "WHAT IS THAT?!" The warrior screeched at the war-hero.

"I don't know…" Ezylryb admitted, himself perturbed by what he was seeing, "But this is no ordinary storm, I can tell you that much…"

"What…what is going on?" A feminine voice asked.

The five owls turned around to see Noctus and Marella, the former helping his mate up to her feet, who then helped their daughter to her feet and waking up Mrs. P. After entrusting Eglantine to Mrs. P, the parents then turned to the Guardians and Nyra with eyes of concern and fear, eyeing the thunderous clouds roiling in front of them, as Noctus asked, trying to get his words out, "Lyze...please...don't tell me...that Soren...and Kludd...are..."

Unfortunately, Ezylryb could do nothing but shake his head as he kept his eyes on the storm, prompting the father to utter, "Oh glaux..."

"No…Noctus..." Marella whimpered, tears threatening her eyes, "I don't want to lose my babies!" With that, Marella sobbed into her mate's feathers, prompting Noctus to comfort her, but he couldn't help but feel her pain, as he was frightened as well...

The band frowned at the parents' suffering, as Twilight then stated with absolute, "We can't just leave them out there with that madman!" before looking at Nyra, "Can we?"

"Of course not!" Nyra snapped at the Great Grey, her head still aching, "But what is it that we can-"

Before she could finish the sentence, a loud screech was heard from within the clouds, and everyone instantly recognized it as Kludd's voice...

"Kludd?" Eglantine asked with fear creeping in her voice, from within Mrs. Plithiver's coils (in order to keep warm).

"Oh glaux..." Marella gasped as she heard her eldest son's voice, more tears dropping from her eyes.

"No…" Mrs. P whispered, trying to refrain tears from dropping from her eyes.

"What is happening in there?" Noctus muttered, while thousands of horrible thoughts ran through his head.

But when Nyra heard the cry of her beloved in trouble, all her mind could focus on aside the pain was that her king...NO, her would-be mate! He needed her! As if her body moved of it's own accord, Nyra quickly spread her wings as she quickly darted towards the cliff, ignoring the surprised exclamations of the others, and with a great leap off the long wide-open cliff, she took to the sky and went to stop her corrupted friend and save her love...or at least she would have, had not another burst of strong wind blasted the white barn owl back onto the yellowish grassy knoll.

"What the hagsmire..." Nyra sputtered, shaking the pain from her back and head, as she then leapt into the air once more, but there was something off with the wind, as it pushed her to the ground once more, "No…" she growled, as she tried again, but she was blown back once more.

"No…no…no…NO!" The queen repeated, her voice growing angrier and more desperate as she tried to fly against the strong winds, but the results remained the same. When Nyra hit the ground for the last time, as rain poured upon her, she was practically drained. All she could do was take shallow breaths while she lied there helpless...it was one of the worst feelings she had ever experienced, knowing that someone you love is in trouble and there was nothing you can do to...NO! She refused to be subjected to such feelings! She will prevail!

With that said in her mind, she manage to pick her up as she prepare to take to the sky once more, but suddenly, she felt someone gripped her right wing, prompting Nyra to look behind her to find Ezylryb looking at her with look of concern, as he said, "Nyra, there is nothing you can do!"

"The hagsmire there is!" Nyra spat in anger, as she tried to yank her wing of Lyze's metal talon, but despite how banged up it was, it's grip was still strong, "Kludd...he...he..."

"Sure he does, he is off fighting possibly one of the greatest threats in owl history just so you and the others would be safe, and I bet you throwing yourself in harm's way is accomplishing just that..." Ezylryb sarcastically remarked.

"But Lyze, I..." Nyra tried to rebut, but the Screech Owl's expression silenced her.

"Or you can stay here, and just pray...it is all that you can do for now..." The Whiskered Screech Owl said somberly...

The white Barn Owl was about to interject, but no words came out, as she knew that the old owl was right...but it didn't make that feeling go away...then she felt something gripped her leg. The white Barn Owl looked down to see her love's little sister hugging her. She was quite confused as to when and how she got there, but irregardless, the little Barn owlet said, looking up as she was gripping her tighter, "It will be okay...Soren and Kludd will come back...they will..."

Nyra looked at the young one, as her eyes were filled with uncertainty, but judging from the little girl's concerned yet confident face, she couldn't help but believe her...the white Barn Owl looked at the clouds once more, her head aching more with pain and tears threatening her eyes again, as she secretly prayed, "_Please...Glaux...if there is one...please protect Kludd..._" With that prayer said, the two female Barn Owls and the Screech Owl returned to seek shelter behind the trees from the horrid weather...

**(-)**

"Kludd!" Soren screeched as he quickly dodged the dark mist that the evil owl had unleashed, but unfortunately, the mist had quickly expanded so rapidly that as soon as Soren turned to face his brother, he could no longer see him or Skarmoris for that matter.

"Kludd?!" The young Barn Owl cried, eyes darting left and right trying to catch a glimpse of his brother...but as with his brother, he could not see him...he was all alone, in the midst of a horrid storm, trapped within a dark shroud conjured up by a owl who was obviously not himself anymore...

Loneliness was something that Soren had feared most among many things, so much that it had haunted Soren in his darkest nightmares, ones where all his loved ones, Otulissa, Eglantine, his parents, his friends, his mentor, and even his brother Kludd, were killed by an unknown deity, bathing in their own blood, eyes void of any life, all of them, torn asunder by a being covered in the color of the night with eyes of a demonic gold. Although none of that had transpired (as far to his knowledge, he fearfully added), he couldn't help but feel that over-bearing weight of fear from clutching his already-pulsing heart, preventing him from moving from his spot...how is it that he is a Guardian, a knight of justice and honor, if he is bounded mid-flight by an awful emotion such as fear?

However, the Barn Owl was given no such time to ponder such a derogatory thought, as he heard a loud screech piercing through the dense fog, prompting Soren to flinch in shock.

"What...was that?" Soren whispered to himself, aimlessly looking through the fog for the origin of the sound, but the sound was all but gone, for all he heard now was the not-so-subtle booming of the thunder ringing throughout the skies, frightening him even more as the Barn Owl raised his sword, a sinking feeling striking his gizzard thus producing a sickening sense of paranoia, making it next to impossible to calm his nerves. If the evil owl out there didn't kill him, the heart-wrenching suspense, looming all around him, would...

Then suddenly, he heard the screech again, the same screech you would imagine in a horror story and would desire for only one thing...death...and to make such matters worse, accompanying that horrible sound was the surprised cry of his brother, causing more horrid thoughts to cross Soren's mind...

"No…BROTHER!" Soren screeched as he then darted forward into the fog, aimlessly flying and not knowing where his brother actually was...but all that he did know was that he was in trouble, and that was his motive as he dashed through the haze, exerting the adrenaline that was now running in his veins, gripping his sword tightly as he did the burning branch that took the life of Metalbeak, letting go of all his fear and worries, and letting anger guide him...he did not like giving the emotion control...but if it meant defeating the monstrosity and saving his brother...so be it...

But unfortunately, as he continued his flight through the forbidden haze, he started to hear a voice echoing throughout the clouds...the young Barn Owl immediately recognized the voice to be of none other than Skarmoris himself...but it sounded much different from when he had heard it about ten to twenty minutes ago...as if someone else was now speaking for him, (**Basically, Skarmoris has Chris Hemsworth's voice now**) perturbing him to no end...Soren couldn't catch all of it, but he did hear this...

"**_…futile…Kludd...you…delaying…inevitable…_**"

When he heard the name of his brother being mentioned, it only made Soren fly faster to find Kludd, knowing that he was running out of time, but the voice spoke once more...

"**_…Skarmoris…no more…vessel…command…_**"

This confused the Barn Owl, what did Skarmoris mean that he was no more? And what was this about 'vessel' and 'command'? To him, it was completely nonsense...but suddenly, a lightning flashed near him, causing to flinch in shock (**pun not intended**) as he spiraled downward, his ear slits ringing from the loud boom of the thunder...when he heard (to much of his ability) of what 'Skarmoris' said next...

"**_...Skarmoris...heart...feed...dark...blossomed...puppet...break...given...chance...live...Skarmoris...damned...solitude...mind...I am free...rule...world..._**"

Soren pulled up as he continued his search for his brother, but what the evil owl said was troubling him...especially the term 'puppet'...and given how Skarmoris said his name and it close to each other, he was referring to himself...confusing him even more...first, Skarmoris was talking in third-person, that he was no more, and calling himself a puppet, what the sprink did he meant by that? There were only two alternatives Soren could get out of that...one, Skarmoris was working for someone of a higher power...which is absurd, for Skarmoris wanted to rule the world...and two...the Barn Owl shook his head, that thought was even more yoicks than anything, something like that only happened in horror stories...then why is he getting that horrible feeling in his gizzard? Then Skarmoris spoke once more, but when he did, more lightning struck _very close_ to Soren, causing his ear slits to ring once more, "_What is it with this damn fog and lightning?!_"

"**_...questions...hurt...remember..._**"

The Barn Owl was grunting in frustration, not understanding what was going on, when he figured, the more of the evil owl's voice he heard, the closer he must be to finding him and Kludd...so he turned towards his left in hope of following the voice...

"**_...slayer...destroyer...warrior...master...death...name...no importance_**" Soren gave a smirk knowing he was getting close..."**_...my title...name strikes fear...a name fitting for...grand executioner of all dubbed unfit to exist...I am...Deathbringer..._**"

The young Guardian's eyes widen and his blood froze when he heard that name...the name that haunted his nightmares when he was but a little owlet..."_No…that is impossible...there's no way...the two brothers, they...they defeated him!_" But the Sulawesi Masked Owl continued, as if he was answering his thoughts...

"**_Oh please...those fools...accomplished...destroying the host I...possessed…should have known...can NEVER kill owls like me…_**"

"_Owls like him?_" Soren asked in his thought, "_What is he talking about? I know the two brothers had slain him! It's impossible to come back to-_" His thoughts were interrupted when more lightning struck with a loud CRACK, affecting his hearing yet again.

"**_… parasites…leeches… torment…darkness…_**" Soren shook his head to get rid of the persistent ringing in his ear slits…"**_…kind's name… lost in the passage of time… but … feared no less…we are …hagsfiends…_**"

The young Tyto Alba's heart nearly jumped when he heard the name…Hagsfiends…he certainly remembered his father telling him and Kludd about them, about how they were once angels, corrupted by the influences of darkness, the very embodiments of evil itself…heck, he remembered hearing rumors of how the Pure Ones descended from hagsfiends…but…they can't be real…Hagsfiends are suppose to be monsters within legends…there certainly cannot be a beast with a heart so wicked…there certainly can't! Then suddenly, louder than he ever heard it before, Skarmoris's voice ranged loud and clear…

"**_Oh but it is Kludd…don't you feel me? Don't you hear my voice within your head? Owls of your heritage and us hagsfiends are connected…because all Tytos had descended from our kind for eons…and it only a matter of time before you mortals returned to your true roots and embrace the power of Nachtmagen!_**"

"No…" Soren whispered, when he heard his brother's name once more, he was in more danger than he had thought…could it be that he and Kludd were faced with a demon? And what was this 'Nachtmagen' that he was talking about? And…what did he mean when he asked, 'Don't you feel me?'…There was no way that his brother could be connected to him and there is no chance in hagsmire that hagsfiends exist…is there? 'Skarmoris' had the answer to that question…

"**_But I am real…I had been real for ages…allow me to demonstrate how real I AM!_**"

Upon hearing that, he heard another lightning crack in the sky…but this time, following that loud boom, he heard the pained scream of none other than his brother Kludd…and it was in that moment, that Soren's anger boiled even more than it did before, as his wings began to flap even harder…and soon, he began to see a big shadowy figure within the dark fog…it didn't take much to figure that he was about to come face to face with Skarmoris…and he honestly didn't give a damn…he was going to protect his brother at all costs…and if it meant risking his hide to fall a clearly demented owl…then that is the price he is willing to pay! So, leaving all his fears and doubts behind, and gripping his sword tightly, he let out a powerful screech as he screamed the one name that kept him strong ever since he was young…

"KLUDD!"

* * *

-**6**-

The scarred Barn Owl growled in pain and fear as he saw the Sulawesi Masked Owl lunged towards him with the ferocity of a mountain cat, while he was hovering, rendered unable to move from the lightning bolt, possibly conjured by the evil owl himself, and helpless to defend himself…

Skarmoris gave a twisted smile, raising his sword and preparing to bring it down on the owl who dared to try and defy what was his fate…to perish along with all the other owls who would dare believe that Tytos were no better than any other species, and who dare try to fight him, knowing that their acts of deliberation will result in utter failure… however, as he was about to finish the Barn Owl, he suddenly felt his feathers tingling, as if there was someone about to attack him…

His feeling was confirmed true when a screech yelling "KLUDD!" echoed within the air and a quick brown blur darted at the big black-winged owl…it was Soren.

"YOU SHALL NOT HURT MY BROTHER!" The angered Tyto Alba screeched as he raised his sword and swung it at the Sulawesi Masked Owl…

Unfortunately, with his senses now heightened, and with the reflexes matching that of the lightning striking all around them, Skarmoris twisted his body to meet Soren's bronze blade with his long silver adjoined sword…

Soren let out a frightened gasp, shocked by the owl's sudden reflexes, as he then locked eyes with Skarmoris's…only to have his own widened in terror as his firm beliefs that all Skarmoris had said wasn't true was shattered into pieces…all by looking into his eyes…

When Soren first saw Skarmoris, one of the first things he learned about him that he possessed silver eyes, colors matching that of his two blades, as cold as the winter's wind, but in the least, they had emotion within him, such as anger and sadness…but now, as the Barn Owl gazed into his now-golden eyes, he knew now that he was no longer staring into the eyes of the owl they originally came to defeat…he was now staring into the cold, dead eyes of an owl far worse than Skarmoris…far worse than Nyra and Metalbeak put together…even worse than Kludd was…no, the demonic golden eyes that he was staring into were that of one of his worst nightmare…a hagsfiend…and even worse…the Deathbringer…

With a simple grunt, the possessed Sulawesi Masked Owl, while skidding his blade with Soren's, flung the young Guardian off of his blade as if he was swatting at a fly, sending him tumbling through the sky aside Kludd…

"S-Soren?" Kludd stammered weakly, body still tingling from the partial shock of a nearly accurate lightning bolt, not to mention he was shivering from the cold rain and wind, but before he could enquire more, his head starting hurting even more…

The younger brother managed to regain balance, as he was now to the left of the older brother, who then looked at his brother in shock and concern, seeing how he was now suffering, "Kludd…"

However, before Soren could enquire what was wrong, a dark chuckle rang out, prompting Soren and Kludd (whose head pain had subsided…for now) to glare at the Deathbringer, (for it was his new name now) who flew before them.

"Well, well, well, I wonder where I had seen this before." The dark owl sarcastically asked, before suddenly saying in false glee, "Oh…now I remember!" With that, he then reared his wings once more and with a great flap, both brothers were swept by a powerful gust, being blown back a couple feet before they both restored their loss of balance, but by the time they turn to face the owl once more, he was gone...but his presence still lingered, as Kludd's head started aching once more...Deathbringer's voice ranged once more,

"**_This is just the way the brothers were...right before I killed the elder brother..._**" The dark owl sneered.

The two brothers both looked around, back to back, as Soren then snarled back, "In case you forgotten...that owl you killed ended up killing you as well!"

"**_Yes, losing that body was quite unfortunate...but as the ancient saying goes, 'when one king falls, another one rises to take his place'...and Skarmoris certainly fulfilled that role with ease..._**"

"So...er...you used your own son...just so you can live again? That is despicable!" Kludd spat, trying to fight the pain within his head, but to no avail.

"**_That is not quite true, Kludd...Skarmoris, or as the others called him, Maurice, was not my son to begin with...he is the son of a weak owl that was on the verge of death had I not come to him...all Skarmoris ever was to me was a freak without a heart...a soul made out of clay, for me to mold with my own claws..._**"

"You monster..." Soren growled.

"**_Oh, Soren...a warrior of the holy Guardians...you despise darkness...you loathe it...yet you are unwilling to rid yourself of the darkness that was created before your eyes many years ago..._**"

Soren stiffened as he looked back at Kludd, whom was still suffering from his mysterious ailment...prompting the Barn Owl to defend, "Kludd is nothing like you! He managed to break free of his darkness..."

"**_You fool...Darkness cannot be destroyed...it can only be channeled...you Guardians can never seem to learn that..._**" The possessed owl explained, (**Master Xehanort reference!**) "**_But let me you ask this, even if Kludd had, as you say, broken free of the chains you dubbed darkness, are you certain you can trust Kludd...after all that he had done?_**"

The young Tyto Alba was about to rebut that statement, but the Sulawesi Masked Owl gave him no chance, as he then spoke to Kludd, "**_And what of you, Kludd? Are you sure you are not jealous of Soren?_**"

Kludd remained silent, as his glare darkened, worrying his younger brother...

"**_If so, riddle me this...you accept darkness, yet choose to live in the light. So why is it that you loathe us damned to darkness; we, who were turned away from the light because our father was so foolish to see the world's true order?_**"

"You just don't understand, do you?" The scarred Barn Owl snarled, gritting his beak from the pain in his mind, conjured by the presence of the unholy being, "I had accepted darkness a year back because...because I was blind...blind to what I wanted, what I had, and of the owl I was becoming...and the thoughts that ran through my mind all that year...it obsessed me so much, that I was afraid...afraid of what I was capable of..." Kludd finished with a sad tone...

"Kludd..." Soren tried to comfort, but Deathbringer had more to say.

"**_That is considered impossible, Kludd...it is not that you were blind to your designs...you are only denying your destiny...what had happened to the once-proud Metalbeak, who was destined for greatness and glory? Why is it now you deny your own kind of its rightful heritage? Had you forgotten of what our loyal Pure Ones had taught you and accepted the foolish thoughts of those Guardians?_**" Deathbringer questioned.

"No…" Kludd answered with absolute, "I could never forget what the Pure Ones taught me...and I still remember our oath as if it was the truth...but what if there is truth in what the Guardians believe, 'Mending the broken, make strong the weak?'"

"**_BLASPHEMY!_**" The evil voice bellowed, "**_THOSE WORDS ARE WORDS OF THE WEAK! WORDS OTHERWISE SPOKEN FROM FOOLS AND IMPURES THEMSELVES!_**"

"No…" The scarred Barn Owl muttered, refusing to accept it, "My father had believed in the Guardians so much and not once had he lost faith in them...for so long I had ignored him…but no more…the Guardians' words are now more true to me then what the Pure Ones ever said."

"**_So you renounce your loyalty as a Pure One? After everything they had done for you?_**"

Kludd however answered, "No…I will never forget what the Pure Ones had done for me…and I would always be grateful to them…but I refuse to rule a kingdom void of any loyalty…my loyalty lied not within the army itself but within a wise Sooty Owl who had inspired me...he perished for the sake of the Pure Ones...but even he lost himself to the darkness...even so…I intend to carry on his legacy...so as my final act as a Pure One, I shall slay the impurity that stains the Pure Ones, and send you back to Hagsmire!" He finished with a vicious bellow, "So get out of my head!"

Even though the brothers couldn't see the Deathbringer, it was apparent that the hagsfiend was off-put by the scarred Barn Owl's words, as the pain within the once-Pure One's head began to disappear…but the evil owl merely asked, "**_Oh, and how will you complete such a daunting task? As I recall…you couldn't even handle your own darkness. How is it then, will you triumph over mine?_**"

"I'm no longer afraid of what the darkness holds now…" Kludd answered. "Even if you cast me into the deepest, darkest abyss, you'll never sway me from the one cause that pushes me to keep on fighting. Whatever the cost, I'm ready to pay it…" He finished, eyes burning with determination.

"And I will be there with him every step of the way!" The young brother declared, breaking his silence, "With his heart…and my dreams…and with our combined might…we shall defeat you!"

"**_Brave words, spoken by no less than Tytos themselves…but it seems that your so called 'heart and dreams' have led you to obliteration, minds corrupted by ones you dare dubbed of equality to us. Perhaps it doesn't pay to be too loyal to some impudent thoughts…and to think you were so close to being a part of such a wondrous world…_**" Deathbringer sneered with contempt.

"There isn't going to be a world like that!" Soren snarled, "In the name of the Guardians and the name of Pure Ones who believed the same as they do, we will prevail!"

"**_Pity…I will never understand why owls like you serve as epitomes for such foolish beliefs…it shall not deter your path that you had laid before yourself…it will only make the pain you will be witnessing far greater…prepare yourself…as the world you see before you will be NO MORE!_**"

With that powerful bellow, the possessed owl burst out of the haze once more with his adjoined sword…however, the brothers, morale and strength boosted by the words of their own, were quick to weave out of the sword's path, and upon readjusting themselves, they circled the hagsfiend and with their own weapons raised…they charged at the one dubbed 'Executioner' and thus began the next bout of metal colliding…

Sparks flew as Soren and Kludd charged at Deathbringer with ferocity, one after another, swinging the battle claws they possessed for a long time and the swords they had looted from the talons of their previous adversaries, Kludd's from the talon of his traitorous lieutenant-turned-general, Nix, and Soren's from that of one of Skarmoris's now-deceased soldiers, Wedge. But the possessed Sulawesi Masked Owl proved to be a powerful foe, as he blocked every single strike with ease and retaliating with strong and nearly accurate swing of his mighty sword…but such intimidation had no effect upon the two brothers' courage, despite every attack blocked by the unholy opponent, the intrepid duo kept to their simultaneous battle tactic, in hope that they would fall this beast from the depths of Hagsmire, like the two heroes that had done many years before…

But the dark owl would not have any of it…with nothingness greeting his silver swords, the ones he had his puppet Skarmoris forged to the likeness of the ones he wielded as the father of the puppet, whose name had long been erased from his mind, his anger grew. For decades since that ill-fated battle against the two brothers, he had rotted within the hellfire of Hagsmire, damned to the chains crafted by those accursed Glamorian angels, forced to spend an eternity with others like him, forever to have hunger that cannot be fed, thirst that cannot be quenched, and relentless pain…fortunately for him, in his short time as the owl's whose life he had taken command of, he had managed to spread his seed to that of a feeble woman, and with that seed blossomed a hatchling…to his dismay, the little one, beaming with innocence and light, could not be touched by someone tainted as himself. To his immoral designs, the owlet was of no use to him, so he left him to his misery within that orphanage, as he flew off to seize his destiny.

However, fate did not smile in his favor, for he suffered a grueling defeat at the hands of two meddlesome brothers from the far northern regions...sure, he had manage to take one of them down with him, but it did not change his fate for he was without a body and his army was reduced to ashes. Without a host, he was considered invisible, unable to physically interact with anything or anyone in the mortal world...and it would had stayed that way forever...had he not sensed a bit of darkness emanating from the child he had abandoned twenty-four years later. Maurice's dark thoughts of murdering his master for taking Nyra away from him was all that he needed to be invited into the Sulawesi Masked Owl's body…and from that moment forth, the Deathbringer was given the power to mend his mind into whatever he desired. But, if the hagsfiend were to take control of a body as he did before, the owl in question would had to be broken, soul and all, and unfortunately for him, Maurice was far from such a state…

But in the end, everything had been played to his advantage, as the reaches of his darkness had grown to incalculable measures from the hate towards his biological father and envy towards his surrogate stemming within Maurice's heart. When the young owl found out that his father was one of most infamous beings, all the Deathbringer needed to do was use the hagsfiend's spiritual power of changing their spectral image to tap into the hate that the boy held for his father, the owl he possessed, and soon, with false promises of power and the one he loved, the owl became clay for which the evil demon could mold. Over the three years that followed, the unholy partnership between demon and puppet had been more than cumulative, for the timid owl that he had nearly taken full reins of had evolved into a powerful evil lord, much more powerful than that of what his old host was…making his body all the more desirable for the hagsfiend to finally take control of…and thanks to the inadvertent help of the two brothers, one of the hated Guardians, and one that denied the awestrucking power of darkness, as well as the queen who had shattered the puppet's wannabe heart, the puppet for which he forged had now become his new mortal body…and this time…he will achieve what his brethrens had claimed impossible…the reign of all the owl kingdoms and the cleanse of all impurities…

With these forbidden thoughts burned into the demon's twisted mind, the Deathbringer doubled his efforts, continuing the flourishing of his argent blade through the haze against the two brothers that served as the first troubling adversaries he had faced since that of the two snowy owls thirty years back. It was of no matter, for the evil owl was confident that he would win this battle…but he grew tired of indulging in the two fools' games for he had an army to rebuild and a world to claim for his own and he would not let these two supposed reincarnates of the two sole victors stand in his way…

The two brothers both let out their battle cries as they both charged at the dark being at once with their sword and claw raised, determined to defeat their foe for the sake of everything they hold dear…but unfortunately, their determination was not enough for both their equipped weapons were met with the silvery sword of the Deathbringer, and the Sulawesi Masked Owl made use of their momentum as he did an aerial back flip, sending Soren and Kludd spiraling into the mist. With the two Barn Owls dazed, the Deathbringer quickly dived into the horrid fog, disappearing once more…

As soon as the brothers recovered, Soren quickly surveyed the area, fearfully asking, "Where did he go?"

Kludd, as soon as he snapped out of his daze, took note of his brother's question, darting his eyes left and right to find the possessed owl, but to no avail…but suddenly, the pain he thought he got rid of returned…and soon after that, the voice of the evil owl echoed as it did before…

"**_Hehehehe…Hurts, doesn't it, Kludd?_**"

Soren immediately searched around, trying to pinpoint where the dark owl was…all the while growing more concerned with his brother as the pain Kludd was experiencing was becoming more severe than ever before, and hindering the scarred Barn Owl's movements…this did not stand him at all as Soren screeched, "DEATHBRINGER! WHERE ARE YOU? ARE YOU AFRAID TO FIGHT US YOURSELF, YOU COWARD?!

"**_A coward, am I?_**" Deathbringer sneered, "**_Those are bold words coming from a Tyto who refuse to accept his heritage._**"

"WHAT HERITAGE?!" Soren snarled, "YOU MEAN THE HERITAGE OF LIVING IN A WORLD OF GENOCIDE AND OPPRESSION?! I RATHER DIE!"

"**_I am more than willing to fulfill that wish. Those who cower in the face of change for the greater good must be stomped out…and as the Executioner of the Impures, I shall be the one to carry out that command! Prepare to meet your demise at the talons of power you cannot begin to comprehend! FULGRUS!_**"

"Fulgrus?" Kludd repeated, his headache not relenting, as suddenly, a loud cracking sound emanated, and accompanying the loud sound was a powerful strike of lightning descending upon the two brothers in a flash.

Fortunately, the two brothers were quick enough to avoid the potentially devastating attack…however, that was only the beginning of a panic-inducing nightmare, as following that lone strike of Glaux's wrath, followed a cascade of bolts from the heavens. The duo was horrified, senses already intensified by their close shave with the first lightning, as they dashed away from another blast of electricity, quickly weaving around any lightning that dared to strike in their flight path. It took no intellect of any kind to figure that what the evil owl had screamed in the end was like a encrypted code, 'a magic word' if you would, that allowed the crier to tap into the very forces of nature itself and unleash it upon those unfortunate enough to be within the scope of a vengeful being, could this be the Nachtmagen that the evil owl spoke of? Neither Soren nor Kludd knew, and they honestly hadn't the time to wonder, as their lives were now in greater peril.

To add insult to injury, while the two owls were flying, hoping to escape the accursed strikes of electricity, the Deathbringer, lurking within his own maelstrom, let out laughs that rang of pure insanity and ultimate evil, relishing in the fear that he had conjured up. Then, as pain suddenly increases in extremity within Kludd's cranium, the Deathbringer's voice ranged with the same level of insanity, "**_That's right; you impudent fools, run like the rats that you had reduced yourselves to…but no matter how much you run, you cannot escape me…like the maelstrom I had brought upon us, darkness is without end. Remember this, as I drag you down into perdition!_**"

Following that loud declaration, the dark being burst through the unholy clouds, lacing his wings with dark cumulus, swinging his glaive of pure silver in a wide crescent, matching that of the dwenking (**That means waning in owl terminology**) moon, concealed by nature's unforgiving wrath. The two brothers reacted quickly, but barely, their blades shifted into that of a guarding stance, as the evil lord's saber crashed against their own, sending sparks flying everywhere. The laws of physics, namely Newton's Laws, had betrayed them however, for even though the duo's bronze swords had effectively shielded them from a scathing blow, momentum did its bidding as the two owls were quickly blown back, descending quickly in altitude. This problem was quickly adverted as the two brothers spread their wings to halt their descents, but there was no end to this sinister hagsfiend's tactics, for he returned to his previous approach of striking the unsuspecting heroes from within the fog, as the owl appeared once more, sword held high, particularly not aiming to kill them, but to induce more fear as the monster toyed with them as a predator would with a prey.

This process rinsed and repeated about twenty times as Soren and Kludd sped through the proverbial minefield of lightning that continued to rain down, as well as dodging the guerrilla-based attacks of the Deathbringer…where another problem began to arise, for the two brothers, whose energy were replenished time and time again by newfound determination was nearly depleted once more. Given how the being they were going against was not of the mortal-kind, their situation was growing dire…and the demon that they were faced with knew it. Pain ailed Kludd once more as the evil being taunted,

"**_AHAHAHAHAH! If I knew this was the resistance I would come against, I would have seized control of my puppet ages ago!_**"

"Damn it…" Kludd muttered, scowling in pain and anger of the owl's cockiness.

"**_But, as fun as this little play had been, the time has come for the coup de grace…_**"

"No…you can't…" Soren whispered, as he then weaved around yet another bolt of lightning that singed a bit of his feathers.

"**_Do not fret, young ones, for entertaining me with your frivolous thoughts and your meaningless resistance, I shall see to it…that you two shall GO TOGETHER!_**"

Unexpectedly from below the two brothers, the Sulawesi Masked Owl risen from within the fog, and swung his sword upward. Of course, the two Tyto Albas expected this and locked their blades with his…but the Deathbringer had anticipated their actions, for when the two brothers focused on keeping the master swordsowl at bay, the possessed owl reared his wings and with a simple flick, the brothers were both swept by a powerful updraft, accelerating skywards towards the very top of the maelstrom…

It wasn't before long when the updraft suddenly let up, leaving the two brothers just hovering, shaken up from the sudden burst of wind conjured from the unholy owl. However, a cackle rang loud, signaling the approach of the hagsfiend…and given how their lack of energy and adrenaline was becoming more apparent paired with the lack of oxygen that accompanied high altitude, they wouldn't be able to endure much longer against the beast of the underworld. The hopelessness of their situation began to have its effect on Kludd…

"No…this…cannot…be…how…it…ends…" Kludd growled, taking long breaths due to the extreme altitude.

"Kludd…we can't…we can't give…give up…" Soren panted, the cold and the lack of oxygen having a profound effect on his speech pattern, "There's…there's too much…at stake…there…has to…has to…be…a way…"

The elder brother let out somewhat of a chuckle, "Soren…even…given…what had happened…your head is still…soft…but I guess…that would be…one of your strong points…but…I doubt…even the Guardians themselves… had ever fought a…a…"

"I know…" Soren admitted, "…but we must stay strong…"

"I don't understand, Soren…how could you not be daunted…when we are on our last legs…and our foe…is a really big owl…possessed by a very vengeful…whatever a hagsfiend is?" Kludd questioned, his determination all but snuffed out…

"Because, brother…I always remember…It matters not…whether you follow…the path of light and order…or the path of darkness and dominance…it matters not…whether you have the…strength, the intelligence, or the courage…all that matters is…that you follow your heart…and dreams…as no matter how dark the path…it leads you on…it will always guide you true." The young Guardian cited, feeling a bit of warmth remembering the words of the owls that inspired him before the Guardians…

Kludd let out a silent gasp, as his thoughts reverted to when his father had first told that story…all this time, way before hearing the legends of the Guardians seven hundred times, despite how confident Noctus and Soren were in the legends…it was the tale of 'The Two Brothers of the North' that felt the most real to him. Of course, this changed as Kludd matured into the hard-hearted, no-nonsense owl that would become king of an infamous force…but still…deep inside the pit of his heart…his beliefs in the two valiant owls that defeated the great evil still lingered. As soon as he thought that last thought, his eyes widened…the great evil that the two snowy owls had defeated was the exact beast they were battling right now…if the two brothers of the North triumphed over against the Deathbringer thirty years before…why couldn't they? Soren was always the quickest of them and his intelligence had helped him overcome many foes…including himself…and as for himself…he certainly held greater strength and he was king, leader of one of the greatest armies there is…or was. As for their bonds…he knew not of how linked the two brothers were in the story…but given all the trials…all the words said and the claws that collided…everything that ever transpired between the two brothers…he knew that it was more than possible to defeat the hagsfiend, as long as his brother stood with him…their victory was practically ensured.

Then it came to the brother as to how they could finally end the nightmare that had befallen them. Given, the plan that was formulating in his mind was a long shot…a _real _long shot…but if it meant defeating the Deathbringer and allowing himself to repair the bonds he had nearly severed so long ago…he had to give it a try.

"Kludd?" Soren asked, confused by his brother's newfound silence.

"Soren…do you remember how…the two brothers defeated the Deathbringer?" The scarred Barn Owl asked.

"Of course…through the power of teamwork…what are you planning?" Soren questioned, catching onto what Kludd is about to suggest.

"Look…given how the Deathbringer is using one sword…and how he had gladly provided us shelter…we must use the dark owl's own tactics against him…as well as our numbers over his…" The ex-Pure One declared.

"What? Kludd…the moment we split apart…he will overpower us one by one…I can't risk losing you…" Soren whispered with fear creeping in his voice.

"Soren." Kludd growled in a serious tone, taking note of his uncertainty, "You must not let fear in…as my commander, Stryker once told me, 'A Pure One never cowers'…and this should be expected no less from the Guardians…tell me, are you or are you not a Guardian?"

That question shocked Soren, as he felt the feeling of his soaring spirit returning once more, and he answered, "I am…I am a Guardian, I shall mend the broken, uphold the weak, and vanquish evil…"

"Good answer." The older brother smirked, as he suddenly felt his head twitching, giving him a feeling that the hagsfiend was closing in on them fast, "Look…if we don't make it out of here…" Soren looked back at his brother with concern, "I just want to say…that it had been an honor, fighting alongside you."

The young brother nearly felt tears come to his eyes when he heard those words, but seeing the silhouette forming beneath them, all he could say was, "The feeling's likewise…brothers."

With that said and done, the brothers immediately split from each other, and the moment couldn't been sooner as a black blur charged through where the brothers previously were, and out of the forbidden haze…

Deathbringer stop his ascension when he realized he had sliced through nothing but air and found himself atop the sea of black clouds that he had conjured up about thirty minutes ago…he surveyed the area and growl in frustration for he no longer saw his two preys…he should have known that they would resort to using his dark haze as a cover…but it angered him to no end as he then bellowed to the brothers, wherever they may be…

"COME OUT, FOOLS! THESE SKIES BELONG TO ME! YOU DARE CALL ME A COWARD YET YOU NOW REEK OF HIPPOCRACY!" As his anger grew, the rain that had subsided had returned as it unleashed its torrential load upon all that flew over the Hagsfiend's Sea, and the lightning, both natural and conjured began to strike all around them. Nothing, absolutely nothing would stand in the Executioner's way of total subjugation…

Unbeknownst to the Deathbringer, the two Barn Owls were actually looming around the top of the clouds, circling the Sulawesi Masked Owl from within the ebony mist, awaiting their chance to strike at the owl…

"DO YOU HONESTLY THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT ME?! I SEE BEFORE ME A GUARDIAN, A TYTO WHOM ABANDONED HIS TRUE GLORY TO PURSUE SOME CHILDISH FANTASY OF JUSTICE AND HONOR AND MUDDIED HIS BLOOD WITH THAT OF THE IMPURES!" The evil owl taunted…

Soren kept his anger at bay, preparing his sword to slice through the unholy being, weaving around the lightning that danced within the clouds…he fell not for the demon's taunt, as he was wrong…justice and honor were not fantasies…the Guardians themselves were living proof of that…and honestly, he rather be considered an Impure than to condescend upon others who didn't deserve it, because he meant what he had said about owls being equal…this was his time to utilize the teachings of all who had inspired him: The Guardians…The Lyze of Keil…The Two Brothers…his father…and his brother, especially his brother…as Soren take a moment to breathe, he remembered all that he held in his heart, his mind giving him the image of what it would be in the future…everyone he loved, his parents, his sister, Mrs. P, his friends, his mentor, his love Otulissa…and his brother and Nyra (to his surprise), all of them laughing and smiling…that was his perfect definition of a great future…and with the closing of his eyes and the spread of his wings, he prepare to lay everything on the line to make that vision a reality…

"AND WHAT OF YOU, KLUDD?! A STAIN UPON THE VERY NAME OF PURE ONES, A TYTO WHO WAS DESTINED FOR GREATNESS, WHEN IN ALL REALITY, HE IS UNWORTHY OF BEARING THE NAME TYTO! THAT IS TOO BAD…FOR THERE IS NOTHING LEFT FOR YOU ALONG THE PATH YOU HAD CHOSEN…NOTHING BUT ETERNAL DAMNATION!"

Kludd merely grunted from those words, mirroring his brother in dodging the strikes send down by natural and unnatural forces alike. He found it hard to believe that if he had heard those words four days ago, he would have angrily retort and possibly kill the one who said such things…but now, he no longer cared…as much pride he felt in being a Tyto, the name itself no longer held such grace with it. Maybe he was wrong when he said he was destined for greatness…what if he was destined for something that outshined greatness, not only in enormity, but in light as well. The lightning began to strike more rapidly, and given how Kludd suffered from a moderate case of astraphobia (**the fear of lightning**), the scarred Barn Owl's heartbeat began to race, if the barn owl didn't remove himself from such an uncomfortable environment, he would surely faint from the palpitations of his heart.

How was he going to strike at his ultimate foe if he can't focus let alone fly amidst lightning? It was then, when Kludd remembered yet another saying from Stryker when he was training with him back as a soldier, "_Stop using the basic moves; use the unorthodox._"

"_Unorthodox…_" The rugged Tyto Alba pondered, when he thinks of that word, nothing came up…how the hagsmire is that suppose to help him now? Then, while pondering that question, a lightning struck down in front of him, the flash blinding him…but that flash did more good than bad…as a old gruff voice came into his head…

"_Trust your gizzard, lad…fly inside…_" The voice of what sounded like Ezylryb mused.

His gizzard…despite remembering what had happened the night before, he still was apprehensive of doing such…his father told him that the gizzard was the most vital part of every owl, for it allowed one to sense whether an owl was good or bad and allowed one to trust another…of course, Kludd just ignored it…as far as he was concerned, the gizzard wouldn't been able to tell you if an owl was scum or not. And even if it did, then why hadn't he felt anything bad when he was around the Pure Ones? Not once when he was with Nyra or his soldiers had he felt anything awful…but then again…that was before…Now his eyes were opened wide for the first time, and maybe, since his heart had became cold, it had render his gizzard unable to tell right from wrong...or maybe that odd feeling of nothingness had rooted from his gizzard sensing him as an awful person. But now, his heart thawing, he could easily tell now that all his selfish actions were wrong, all that his once-pitch black mind had thought was wrong, and…as his gizzard was feeling odd once more, he knew now that the owl he was facing was far more evil than anyone he had met, even himself, and he needed to be stopped…and he and Soren were the ones who needed to do it.

Knowing there was no time to lose, Kludd tried to calm his nerves and let his gizzard do what it must…but given how he was caught in a lightning storm and he was trying to avoid the spears of electricity, he couldn't clear his mind of everything that was weighing him down…maybe it was the fear of what the future had in store for him, given all the sins within his past, or the fear of having to give up the love of his life so he could return to his family…or glaux forbid it, what everyone would think of him now…

"_Come on, Kludd…focus! I did this once…why can't I do it again? What is holding me back?_" The scarred barn owl said to himself, when a awful thought occurred, "_Could it be…that my heart is…weak?_"

Then suddenly, a voice echoed within his head...it was the voice of someone he had met only a few nights back...but could easily remember his voice anywhere...it was Samuel...

"_Kludd…you possess one of the strongest hearts I had ever known…_" The wise owl's voice echoed.

"Samuel?" Kludd said aloud, "Is that you?"

The wise snowy owl did not answer, but continued, "_Your heart may be released of it's shadowy binds, but in order for you to begin your first step towards redemption, you must finally learn to trust your gizzard..._"

Kludd stammered to defend himself, "But, Samuel...I am trying...but I don't know if I..."

"_But in order to do that…you must learn to trust yourself…you must let go of all your doubts, all your fears. Just remember all that you hold dear…and let your gizzard and your heart guide you…_" With that, the snowy owl's voice disappeared...

(**Cue The Lightning Strike by Snow Patrol**)

Kludd remained silent as those words of the wise snowy owl sunk into his mind…to trust himself…he had indeed remembered his father saying that a gizzard was vital to helping trust oneself and given how almost everything he had told him and Soren over the years had been true…it was now or never…

The young Barn Owl took a deep breath and close his eyes as he attempted to give his gizzard one more try...within the blackness that came from closing his eyes, the bothering thoughts in his mind had returned, of course, hindering the process…but then…as the words Samuel said, 'Just remember all that you hold dear' echoed within his head…a figure started to appear before him, at first, Kludd could not make out the image, but within moments, the scarred Barn Owl saw none other than...Soren?

Indeed, within Kludd's mind, it was his brother that was just standing before him, just smiling at him with one of his trademark smiles…then suddenly, another figure materialized right aside him, much taller than his brother, but the young Tyto Alba recognized the gorgeous white feathers…Nyra…the beautiful white Barn Owl that Kludd fell so much in love with was there now, also showing a smile that nearly made Kludd melt…however, multiple beings began to take shape before the Barn Owl's eyes…the first two, who appeared behind Soren, were his parents Noctus and Marella…then next to Soren's feet, appeared Mrs. P. Then to the right of Kludd's brother was none other than Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight as well as Ezylryb. Then to the left of Nyra, as a figure of black feathers formed before Kludd's eyes, shocking him as he saw none other than Metalbeak himself…but his expression, and all of the others' expression for that matter, they were all smiling…the scarred Barn Owl didn't know what they were smiling at…but he had a pretty good feeling and it made him feel the same way he did last night…then suddenly, another form appeared before him, taking the shape of none other than his little sister…Eglantine, whose smile was brightest…

"Kludd…let's go home." The imaginary 'Eglantine' said, as she lent out her stubby little wing…and all Kludd could do was smile inwardly…

Unbeknownst to himself, the Barn Owl's wings began to spread as wide as they did the night before…

The Deathbringer's anger grew even more when the two Barn Owls didn't respond to his bellows… "Don't turn your back on me, you worthless Tytos! I want you both to look at me when I kill you! I want to see the light leave both your eyes when I send my blade through your worthless bodies!"

The two brothers' eyes remained close as their swords were now moving into striking position…

Snickering, the evil lord sneered, "You two don't seem to understand, do you? I am going to kill you both, Soren and Kludd. After tonight, no one will dare question my powers. After tonight, if they speak of your names, they'll speak only of how you begged for death and I, being the merciful lord I am…merely obliged…face it, lads, this is the end for you."

Soren and Kludd did not hear any of this…in fact, they didn't hear the booming of the thunders or the rain pattering their bodies…all they could hear now was the thumping of their hearts and all they envisioned were the sights of their family for when they returned…the time to hide and run for cover was over…it was time to end this nightmare once and for all…with that thought in mind, Kludd and Soren's eyes open wide, as they no longer showed fear nor doubt, but they were of determination and light and peace. They were now gizzard flying, as the storm of unprecedented rage unleashed it's glaux-like rage all around them…but as if removed from the physical world itself, their gizzard guiding them through the lightning storm, the rain circulating all around them, every feeling within their body became meaningless…to Soren, this feeling had all but became natural to him, given how he been using it often throughout the year, but to Kludd, who had always doubted his gizzard, the feeling…was indescribable, and in that moment, he remembered it as the feeling he felt last night…no wonder his brother and Ezylryb embraced it. Then, without a thought forming, the winds, which had plotted against them throughout the battle, had finally gave in to the heroes' need for a second wind (**Pun not intended**), as they were now behind the two brothers' wings, accelerating them forward. Soon, Kludd then pulled out of his circular route, as he dashed forward and upward towards where his target were, and Soren followed suit…even though they were separated, they felt each others' spirits within themselves…and together, they were brothers…

The hagsfiend, unaware of the impending attack plotted against him, let out an evil laugh as he said, spreading his wings wide, "Enough games, fools! For thirty years I had waited for this moment…for once in my life, I shall prove my brethrens wrong and conquer this damn world. For progress for the sake of progress is required greatly. I shall preserve the code of the Tytos, which must be preserved, perfect a world where it can be perfected, and for in the name of the Almighty Tyto himself, THERE SHALL BE PURITY!"

Suddenly, with Deathbringer's mighty screech, lightning struck once more…and when that lightning struck, a sudden blur burst out of the sea of clouds and sped past the Deathbringer…but not without a blade slicing across his already scarred chest.

"GAH!" The dark owl screeched in pain as he turned his head towards where the blur had went, only to freeze in utter rage, as the owl that just hover there, with wings spread and with eyes that freakishly reminded him of a snowy owl he fought so long ago, was none other than Kludd. "You…" He growled with the greatest venom, enraged from the pain inflicted by him, as blood dripped from the new-made scar, "What trickery is this?!"

Kludd did not answer them, angering the hagsfiend even further, but before he could react, something slammed into his back so hard that it caused him to lose altitude and fall just meters within his own maelstrom. The dark owl growl furthermore as he about-face to find none other than Soren, who flew at him with sword raised and with eyes burning with the same flame as his brother.

"Grr…look likes someone had finally grown a gizzard!" Deathbringer snarled, "Very well…prove your worth!" With that, he then swung his elongated silver glaive at the charging barn owl…but the wind continued it's guidance, as Soren spiraled his body over the arc of the swinging blade, and slashed at the bleeding chest once more in an alternate direction, not deep enough to harm any vital organs, but enough to leave another bleeding mark, as the Deathbringer flinched back in pain, confounded by the owl's flying patterns…

"How…never in all my life had I ever seen such ways of flight! What is the meaning of all this?!" The possessed owl demanded.

His question however was met with a screech, as Kludd, as if following up on his brother's attack, suddenly appeared from the side and hammered him in his left flank, sending him spiraling further down into the dark clouds.

After many feet dropped in altitude, the Tyto Rosenbergii was able to halt his fall, but it wasn't before long when Soren and Kludd came speeding at him, as the dark owl muttered, "Where did such strength and speed came from?! I sensed your heart-beats growing weak! THIS IS NOT HOW IT SHOULD END!" He finish with a screech as he then brought his sword up to block against the two brother's strikes, but momentum were now against the devil, blasting him further back through the unholy fog. But he continued, "I WILL NOT BE BROKEN BY TWO MORTALS!" This screech was replied with another dual strike, as he blocked it again, thus hurtling him back farther. Even though the two brothers did not know it, they were now within the spire-laden path that lead to where the Pillar of Supremacy once stood, and even more so, Deathbringer now stood before the edge of the fog that would lead out to the cliffs (where Soren and Kludd's loved ones were, as I may remind).

The owl in question was now aching in pain, as his chest was bleeding profusely and his back and left hip was now aching and bruised from the two brutal tackles from the two brothers…the only thought that ran through his head, aside from the anger boiling like a volcanic eruption, was how is it that he was being beaten around by two Tytos who had denied their own birthright? He was a hagsfiend for glaux's sake! He was suppose to be a perfect being…no, he IS A PERFECT BEING! Gifted with dark powers from _him_, he would, with the help of the puppet, bring the entire world to it's knee, and strike fear into the hearts of many…sure the loss of his army was a minor drawback, but he could always gather another army…but this was his DESTINY to prevail! He cannot let the new dawn die before it began, he can't, he had to prevail!

Soon, Soren and Kludd came charging at him once more, as the Deathbringer snarled, "FULGRUS!" With that command, more lightning strikes began to rain down in front of the two brothers, to act as a shield, but due to the nature of their flight, they manage to weave expertly around it without even being daunted by the sudden flashes of light, shocking the evil demon even further…

"What? No! No one had ever lasted this long against my powers, not since…" The hagsfiend's eyes widen as he realized what the two Barn Owls were unintentionally shadowing, and as if a trick of the light, his sight began to flicker as in the two Barn Owls that were heading towards him were suddenly replaced by two Snowy Owls, and the skies themselves began to flicker from dark gray to light gray, adjoined with the sudden shift in appearances of his two attackers. The Deathbringer blinked his eyes repeatedly, but each time he opened them, the two owls continue to shift feathers between brown and snow white…rest assured, this is not hurting the integrity of this story, for what is happening was a act of betrayal being brought upon the hagsfiend, a betrayal of his own mind. Suffering was no new feeling for a hagsfiend, for it was all that a hagsfiend could feel…but as the eons passed, their damned souls hardened and were unaffected…the most minors of pain was nothing to them…but now, a newer feeling had taken roost within the Deathbringer's mind, ironically, one that he always feasted upon…**fear**…fear of being defeated by the same owls he thought he had long ago destroyed when he took the older brother's life and (as he watched as a wandering spirit) sent the younger brother into endless despair. Of course, this wasn't so, but with the mix of fear and the pain he was feeling, it was safe to say that the hagsfiend was becoming mad.

"No…THIS CANNOT BE!" The demon owl screamed, as he swung his sword at the two owls, prompting them to halt their charge and split apart as they now circled around the dark owl, looking at him with those eyes of determination, much like the two brothers before them thirty years back (much to the evil owl's horror), "YOU THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT ME AGAIN?! NO! FOR THREE DECADES I HAD WAITED FOR MY SECOND WIND! AND I WILL NOT BE THWARTED AGAIN!" He snarled as he held his sword vertically, in front of his face, gleaming with demon-yellow eyes, "IN THE END, TYTO WILL FOREVER RULE ALL! I DON'T CARE WHAT STRINGS THAT 'FATHER' HAD PULLED TO GIVE YOU STRENGTH, BUT IN THE END, IT WILL BE ME AND ALL OTHERS LIKE ME THAT SHALL HAVE THE FINAL LAUGH, BECAUSE NOTHING WILL PROTECT YOU ALL FROM US! NOT OWLS, NOT WEAPONS, NOT EVEN ARMOR. SO IN THE NAME OF TYTO, AND TO SPRINKING HAGSMIRE WITH FATHER, EMBRACE YOUR OWN **DAMNATION!**" With that mighty bellow, Soren and Kludd, whose face grew more serious, but undeterred, then swooped in from both sides in a pincer-formation at the Sulawesi Masked Owl, who in turn swung his mighty blade, ready to end his foes once and for all…

But, as the flow of time was hampered sixfold, as Soren, who was on the recieving end of the mighty owl's silver blade, swerved around his silver blade and with his battle claw, he raked his claws along Deathbringer's side. Before the evil owl should react to the sudden pain, Kludd then swung his blade along his neck, again not severing any blood vessels, but it still hurt a lot. The dark owl screamed in pain as the new wounds hindered his movements, but the two brothers were far from finished, for as soon as they return to their circling path, they both doubled back and struck the owl once more, this time, Kludd running his battle claw along the owl's back and Soren slashed at his right leg, all the while the Deathbringer failed to retaliate. This process repeated many times, as the two brothers, with great speed (to an untrained eye), dashed through the evil owl over and over, slicing and dicing through and through, prompting the owl's body to flinch back and forth from momentum. Within moments of such a brutal and vicious combo attack, the hagsfiend's once battle-tempered body was covered with marks all over his chest, his wings, his back, his legs and one along his neck, blood seeping out of some of them while other managed to seal up…only to be re-opened by more swishes of metal.

Deathbringer's body began to ache ever so viciously from all the wounds, barely unable to move due to all the pain. His fear and desperateness grew even more, knowing that he would not be able to take much more punishment if this continued…Fighting the pain, the Sulawesi Masked Owl brought his sword up and swung with full stride at Soren, who was charging at him with sword raised…but his sword proved superior, for as soon as Soren smashed his blade into Deathbringer's own, the upper half of the blade that once served as Deathbringer's left sword was shattered into shards. The dark owl flinched back in horror as he gripped his remaining sword, shaking off the remnants of the other sword that was connected with it…but it mattered not, for with that exertion of energy, the Deathbringer was now depleted of all energy, for his wings were barely keeping him airborne…

Soren and Kludd, after the former shattered the demon's weapon, weaving past each other as they flew back a few meters away from the hagsfiend, as the younger brother, silent as to keep concentration, spoke in his mind to his brother, if he could hear him, "_Let's end this madness, Kludd…_"

Kludd gave a smirk, weaving past his brother once more to face the Deathbringer once more, answering his brother in what seemed to be a telepathic conversation, "_Yes…brother…_"

With those two words said and a nod from both brothers, they barreled towards the Deathbringer with the wind behind their backs once more, accelerating towards their target at a high-rate of speed. The dark owl raised his head weakly to see the two brothers bulleting towards him, as his mind caused the two owls attacking him to flicker between being Barn Owls and Snowy Owls once more…unable to do anything, all Deathbringer could do was scream, "No…No…NO!"

Following that scream, Kludd and Soren both crashed into the Sulawesi Masked Owl with a tremendous amount of force, effectively breaking a few ribs and sending all three of them through the edge of the maelstrom and out of the forbidden fog, once and for all…

* * *

-**7**-

Nyra's eyes darted open, as her head stopped hurting. For the past hour or so, given how Soren and Kludd were out in the fog fighting Skarmoris, and being unable to help at all, all that the group of owls and a snake could do was seek shelter behind the trees for the storm was at full force. Ever since then, her head was aching for some odd reason, and despite the herbs Ezylryb gave her to cure it, it still burned. Along with that headache, a bad feeling had struck her hard in the gizzard, the feeling of helplessness, a feeling she long despised. It pained her knowing that someone she loved was out there and she knew not whether he was alive or dead or glaux knows what, and there was **nothing** she could do about it, as it filled Nyra with dread…

As the white Barn Owl looked around, she could tell that she wasn't the only one feeling the hopelessness. At a tree to her left, she saw Digger and Gylfie, in each other's wings (giving her a feeling that while she was gone, something happened between those two), while both of them were huddling up to Twilight, all their expressions fraught with worry, as they tried to keep warm. Next to the tree to the right, she saw Noctus and Marella, huddling around their daughter at their feet, trying to keep her warm, despite the fact she was already wrapped in Mrs. P's coils…but the expression on the Barn Owl couple's faces pained her, as Marella's eyes were still red and puffy from the breakdown she had finding out that her two sons were trapped in that ominous-looking cloud that materialize out of nowhere, and as for Noctus…despite how strong he may appear to be, she could easily tell that he was scared as hagsmire…

Suddenly, she felt a nudge, as she turned to face Ezylryb, who she was huddling against to keep warm (much to her chagrin), as the old owl asked, "What is it, Nyra? Your head still bothering you?"

"No…actually, it suddenly stopped hurting…" Nyra replied, actually quite confused with the disappearance of her ailment.

"That's a bit odd. No one can suddenly have a headache and suddenly have it disappear." Ezylryb pointed out, just as mystified as she was, "When exactly did your head started hurting?"

Nyra tried to think, "I don't know exactly…all I remember was waking up and checking to see if everyone was alright before we saw…"

Her explanation was interrupted when a loud crash of thunder was sounded, as Nyra and Ezylryb quickly looked around the tree to peek at the large mass of clouds, which seems to begin shrinking, for suddenly, something burst out of the clouds, and with the winds carrying it, the 'thing' was hurtled both by force and wind as it suddenly crashed against the grounds of the cliff, sliding only a little bit…even though the end of the cliff was a good distance from the woods, they could make out the fell image…it was the body of Skarmoris…

Nyra and the Lyze of Keil both gasped, as they were about to approach the body, when suddenly, two owls landed between in front of the Sulawesi Masked Owl on the cliff, causing both owls to suddenly gasp and smile for joy as the two owls turned out to be none other than Soren and Kludd. Their gasp for joy didn't go unnoticed, as the band and the brothers' family decided to see what they were looking at…only to be shocked and overjoyed to see the two Barn Owls, as Marella tried to stifle a cry and Digger and Gylfie a cheer, while Noctus, Twilight, Mrs. P, and little Eglantine gave a smile as well.

The two in question were both now panting, their adrenaline now gone and given how many time they were pushed to exhaustion, they were extremely tired and aching all over, and probably would go for a nest or something soft so they could finally rest…but there was one more matter to attend to before they could go off and do that…that matter being the owl that laid unconscious in front of them.

With a look to his brother, Kludd took a step towards the still figure precariously, somewhat ready to flinch back should the evil owl dared try to suddenly burst back to life to exact his retaliation. The scarred Barn Owl's precaution was proven half-necessary, for the unconscious owl began to stir, causing both Kludd and Soren to slowly take battle stance. That was not needed, as the owl tried to raise his body, but the wounds the two brothers inflicted upon him was so great, that he merely dropped back down. It became more apparent that the owl was unable to fight when his mask parted open, as he started coughing blood all over the ground. After a few bloodied coughs, the owl merely raised his head to face the two brothers, only to surprise the two brothers, for the Sulawesi Masked Owl's eyes were no longer yellow…they had reverted back to silver, matching that of the owl that they originally fought…Skarmoris…or should it be Maurice?

For a few seconds, as the storm began to subside, the two brothers stood there, facing the once mighty owl that took control of the Pure Ones now reduced to a pitiful bloody heap lying before them, giving both of them what seemed to be a glare and…pleading?

Kludd broke the silence when he took a step forward again and addressed him…by his true name, "Maurice…"

The Tyto Alba was immediately interrupted by the owl's weak and scratchy chuckle, as he said, "Maurice…I had lost the right to hold that name the moment I let that bastard into my heart. I followed him to the end and look where it had got me…no army…no home…and now, no dignity…"

"I am sorry it had to come…" Kludd tried to continue.

"Oh, spare me the sympathy, Kludd." Maurice weakly snarled, "You and I both know what you want. So do it…put the broken out of his misery…kill me and reclaim your crown as king of the Pure Ones…prove to those weak-minded fools that you deserved the right to be dubbed High Tyto." He finished with another cough.

Soren looked at Kludd in worry that he would actually consider doing something like that, given how much hagsmire that the dark owl had put him through and knowing how Kludd acted during their journey; but to his surprise, all that he could see was indifference etched upon his elder brother's face, that spoke of no evil or hate.

Then Kludd continued, as he started with a light-hearted chuckle, "You know…had we been in this position four nights earlier, I would have gladly done as you ask…but then again, I would have become no better than the demon you let in. But from where I stand now, you have nothing left for me to take back, and despite what you tried to do to me, my family, and Nyra, I see no reason to take your life…and I shall not stain my claws any more than I had now."

Maurice's eyes turn to utter shock which soon converted to anger, as rage and pain began to boil within the Tyto Rosenbergii, "No…you can't do this…YOU CAN'T DO THIS!"

The younger brother tried to soothe, "Maurice…don't…"

"SHUT UP, YOU WEAK TYTO!" The black-winged Tyto screamed at the brother, "I DEMAND YOU END MY LIFE! RID ME OF THIS CURSE THAT PLAGUED ME ALL MY LIFE!" The owl's voice began to grow desperate as tears began to strike his eyes "KILL ME! KILL ME, YOU COWARD! **KILL ME!**" With that last screech, he began breaking down as he whispered, "Please…I am already dead on the inside…"

The others from the forest watched with fear and pity as the Sulawesi Masked Owl screamed at the two brothers, mostly at Kludd. The only one that was affected by all this was Nyra, as she watched with bits of tears in her eyes, at what had become of what was once her friend.

Kludd merely looked at the now sobbing owl as he then said, "Maurice…I refuse to give death to those who request it…even if they deserve it…because that would be what monsters like the Deathbringer would want. Darkness may had laid claim to you…but that doesn't mean that light is beyond your grasp…you may lose sight of it, but it is still there, you just have to grab ahold of it…only then shall you escape the hagsmire that darkness had created for you."

That saying had affected the broken owl as he stopped sobbing…but that because the saying had ignited more anger as the owl looked at Kludd with eyes that would burn into your soul, and started laughing darkly, "So you think you can escape your darkness, Kludd? That is where you are wrong. Once you accept it, you can't turn your back on it, no matter how much you try, because darkness is like a plague, once it is introduced to your system, it spreads like wildfire. In the end, darkness will consume you as it had done to me…in the end, you and I are not that different."

This prompted a short silence from Kludd before the scarred Tyto replied coldly, "I am nothing like you…I may have let the darkness take ahold of me, and maybe it is still there…but unlike you, I will not stop till it is gone…because if the Guardians believe that light will triumph over darkness, then that a belief I am willing to accept."

Maurice then snarled, "Don't talk like you're one of them! You're _not_… even if you'd like to be. To them you're just a monster, like me. They might see the light in you right now, but when they don't, they'll cast you out. Like a haggish creature. Because their morals…their 'code'… it's nothing but a joke, dropped at the _first_ sign of trouble. They're only as good as the world allows them to be. You'll see. When it comes down to them, these…these 'Guardians', they'll _eat_each other alive. Because you see, I'm not a monster. I'm just a taste of what is to come."

"No, Maurice," Soren answered sternly, "That 'code' you speak of is a code that cannot be broken, maybe you don't see it, but I see it in the Guardians all the time. I see it now in Kludd more than ever." This prompted a surprised look from the older brother.

"What a fool you are, Soren…" Maurice sniggered, as he coughed up more blood, "Kludd is your weakness, your Achille's Heel…but even you cannot denied that your brother is a different owl from the one you once called brother…you think you can save him, but even you know that your brother's consummation with darkness is inevitable.

"You are wrong, Maurice!" Soren suddenly exclaimed, "The darkness will never overcome him. You know why? Because…" he sent a sideways look at his brother, almost to reassure himself, "there is a spark of light within him, and even if it is the tiniest spark... It is enough to make the darkness quail. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness will never overcome it."

"But even the strongest of light can be snuffed out. Then the darkness will come, with a speed greater-" The black-winged owl coughed, and continued, "With a speed greater than you can fathom. And you will not do anything. You will not be able to."

Soren was about to rebut that statement, refusing to believe that something like that would happen, but his voice grew silent, when a demented chuckle from the fallen masked owl broke the eerie stillness. "You see? You have no answer, because it is true. Believe me," Through the coughs, the blood, and the darkness, for a second, the evil owl's tone became... almost sympathetic, as if he had the fleeting thought that he should have done something different, "The darkness is inescapable. The owl you will become, will be as a shadow. Black. Incapable of showing or expressing emotion..." he lifted his head, and an ember of fire burned in his eyes "untouchable."

"Mindless. No free will. A pawn!" Soren screeched, "In the end, all that ever becomes of you, or any other, is a PAWN to the hands of-"

Kludd raised his wings, brought out from his thought by his brothers voice. "Must you always argue every point he makes, brother?" he half-whispered shortly.

"But, Kludd, he's…"

"Forget it, Soren…it's a waste of time to try and reason with him." Kludd stated with absolute.

The black-winged owl let out another hacking cough as he said with a sick smirk, "Mark my words, Kludd…your darkness will find you, no matter where you go…and when you least expect it, it will burn you from the inside…and you won't even recognize yourself when it does." With that, the owl broke into another fit of coughs.

"If that ever happens, I guess I will see you in hagmire…" he spat…and let out a sigh, and brought his wings down, "But it will never happen." Although his words were defiant, they were not in sync with what was running through the barn owl's mind. There, an uneasy feeling that the words of the once-honest Maurice may have more truth in them than he wanted to know. Maurice had experienced the darkness, as Kludd never had. Were these words coming from experience, or a simple desire to hurt the barn owl as a parting gift?

His mind did not know the answer…but as he thought back earlier, it was fool-hardy to just ponder what could happen. And given the condition the Sulawesi Masked Owl was now in, he could hurt anyone no more. He turned to his brother, and with the best smile he could muster (which wasn't much due to how battered the barn owl) and said, "Let us go home…brother."

The younger brother gave him a smirk when he had heard the word 'home', and a even bigger one as he heard those words from his own brother. He had waited all year to hear that very word (or something to that effect) and see the day that his family would be brought back together. Maybe that dream he had before this whole thing had begun could possibly come to fruition…with a nod and one last look upon the Sulawesi Masked Owl, they turned their backs on him, as they walked towards the woods.

Now depleted of all his strength and seeing how the two were now walking away from him, the black-winged owl merely dropped back to the ground and was breathing heavily…as far as he was concerned, it was all over for him. His heart began to slow as the blood still seeped from all the wounds he was inflicted with. He had little to no recollection of what happen during his fight against the two brothers, but all he could remember was how he suddenly blacked out as he was about to meet his end at the bottom of the Hagsfiends' Sea and the overwhelming pain within his heart…all of it caused by the one he once called father. "Father..." The dark owl muttered angrily. He had never forgotten how all of his torment and suffering began with him, abandoning him, being shunned because of having his blood, and now…he was going to die because of him and his damn crackpot beliefs of ruling the owl kingdoms. Well no more…it wouldn't be long before he died of his wounds, and when that happen, he would forever be free of the curse that his father had set upon him, and maybe…he could finally find peace in himself. He then whispered to himself, "Well, father…it is over…they had won and we had lost. It seems like your 'perfect world' will not come to fruition…"

"_You foolish boy, it is not over till I say it is…!_" A dark and angered voice echoed within his head.

Before the young owl could ask what he spoke of, his heart began to burst with pain, rendering him unable to speak. And to his horror, the Sulawesi Masked Owl's body began to move against his will, as pain invaded his entire being as he began to get up without his said so. Tears began stricking out of his eyes from the awestrucking pain, and his eyes were forced open as he eyed the two brothers. As much as the owl wanted to stop, he had no will left to hold the darkness within him, his eyes now flickering between silver and yellow and with the flickerings, the image of the two barn owls began to become that of two snowy owls, as if to relive a horrid memory. Maurice, growing afraid of what he was being forced to do, tried to plead within his mind, "_Fa-Father…please, don't make me do this…_"

"_I'm not making you do anything, you worthless pawn, I am taking care of some unfinished business because…if I am going down…I am bringing at least one of them with me!_"

With that, Maurice winced his eyes as he fell to his knees, clutching his heart and trembling, feeling nothing but unrelenting pain consume the remnant of his soul. But the trembling soon stopped as the black-winged owl's eyes open up to reveal an ominous gold…

As Soren and Kludd continued towards the woods, both of them still aching from the pain that their fight had brought upon them, the two brothers heard a faint 'Sorey! Kludd!'. Looking up, both Barn Owls' hearts nearly leapt for joy as they saw the sight in front of them…

Just at the edge of the woods, a few feet away from them, the group consisting of Nyra, Ezylryb, Digger, Gylfie, Twilight, Noctus, Marella, Mrs. P, and Eglantine were all there, as Eglantine was waving out of them, with a beaming smile. She wasn't only one as Gylfie and Digger were following suit, as they were overjoyed to see Soren again. Twilight was also bellowing cheers as well, as he said, "I knew they would come back!"

The two Tyto Albas' parents beamed with silent pride, as Marella nearly burst into tears of joy, but she kept it all in while the father just stood there, with an expression that spoke a thousand words. The nursemaid let out a few tears, but unlike Marella, that is all that did happen, as Mrs. P gave a teary smile.

But no one was no more prouder than Nyra and Ezylryb, as Nyra's heart was swelling with a wordless joy, a joy that cannot be explained. It is the ecstatic mixture of relief, pride, and just plain happiness, that cannot be expressed in words. Her friend (well, more than just a friend), had returned, against all odds... And with his brother. Yes, she was not quite so stricken with Kludd, that she did not notice his brother. Soren. The owl she should hate... was now a hero in her eyes. He had saved the best owl she had known in a long while…And lived to tell about it. That was quite a feat…yet, it was Kludd that brought her attention the most. As he strode towards them, far from his usual proud gait, her heart knotted with worry. The old Screech Owl was also very proud, not only of his student for going against a powerful adversary and coming back alive, not that he hadn't done so before against Surtr, but he was also proud of Kludd. Not once had he ever thought that he would be saying this to a Lord High Tyto of the Pure Ones, but he was proud, many a Guardian who would envy all that he done tonight…nonetheless, he was damn proud of him.

The two brothers smiled at the owls who had waited here for their safe return. The young brother was all but overwhelmed to see his family and friends again, for there were times where he thought he would never see any of them again…Kludd on the other hand was more focused on Nyra, sure, he was extremely glad to see his family, talons down, but as he looked at the white barn owl, words could not begin to describe the feelings that moved through his mind now. When he had last seen her, he had honestly believed with all his heart, that he would never see her again. Yet here she was, standing before him, just as beautiful as she ever was…for once in his life, pride would not begin to describe the feeling that welled up within him right had certainly pulled through it all, through the greatest enemy he had ever faced…was his own darkness. For that, not Skarmoris, was the greatest enemy of all. Not to say that taking down that monster wasn't a feat…and judging from the female Tyto's eyes, she felt the same joy as he did…

But, just as Kludd was about to address her, a sudden pain shot through his head once again, causing him to clutch his head in pain. And at the same time, Nyra's head began to ache once more as well, immediately concerning the group gathered around Nyra and Soren.

"Brother! What's wrong?!" Soren asked, extremely worried.

Kludd was confused himself, "I don't know! My head started hurting all of a sudden, as if…" Kludd's blood immediately froze, and Soren, who saw his horrified expression could easily tell what is happening, as he witnessed this happening a few minutes ago…

Suddenly, deep breathing began to echo throughout the air, a sound that lusted for one thing and one thing only…vengeance. The two owls' knew that such a horrid sound could come from only one owl…the two brothers summoned up the courage to slowly turn around, and as soon as they did, their hearts started to palpitate. Nyra, trying to fight the newfound pain within her head, slowly looked up to see the origin of the deep breathing as her own blood began to freeze…and judging from the looks in everyone else's eyes, as they too saw what was striking fear into all of them, who could blame her? All that she could say was, "No…Maurice…No…"

Indeed, standing at the edge of the cliff, fully erect, and with eyes of hellish intent and of ghastly gold was none other than Maurice…no…The Deathbringer. Even though the puppet itself had given up and was now nearly reduced to pieces, the puppet master, the one who almost had it all…twice, only to be foiled again by two brothers, was far from finished. If books of legends ever have a list of ten things that you SHOULD NEVER DO at all, it would be enraging a hagsfiend past their breaking point, for when they are angered, all that they will see is the source of their anger, and even if it meant doing harm to one self, they would eradicate that being at all cost. And all that the hagsfiend could see now, in all his rage, were the two brothers, for fear had demented his minds to the point that he could not differentiate them from the legendary two brothers that he had faced thirty years ago. It was his hate of the Impures that had begun this conquest, and damn it, it would be hate that would finally give him utter satisfaction.

Soren and Kludd were both mortified by what they were seeing, as Kludd then snarled within his mind, "_How…many…times…must…we…defeat…the… same…sprinking…owl?!_" (**Kung Fu Panda 2 reference!**)

With the wind blowing steadily behind the hagsfiend, the dark owl lowered his body almost to the ground…

"Maurice, don't_…_" Nyra whispered, as she had a bad feeling that this wasn't going to end well…

But the white barn owl's unintended pleading went unanswered, for the dark owl let out a powerful battle cry, and with the push off of his talons, the hagsfiend went on his final reckless assault, with only two targets in mind. Despite how badly wounded the black-winged owl was, the Deathbringer could still run at a very good speed, and with anger dulling the pain that would otherwise be unbearable to a mortal, nothing was going to stop him, nothing whatsoever.

The next few moments happened so fast that the scene in itself would had to be slowed down to fully comprehend what would happen. The normal response to a very-peeved hagsfiend charging right at you would to get the heck out of there, but our two heroes had no such luxuries, for Soren nor Kludd had any more energy in reserve to tap into, in fact, their exhaustion was so great that they couldn't even run. They heard their names being yelled out, from Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight, from their parents, and even from Ezylryb to get out of the way (for the beast was running too fast for them to intervene in time, as the group themselves were worn out). Not wasting time, they both were about to do so. But Soren (as you understand, was exhausted from the awful battle) immediately tripped onto the ground, and tried to get up, but it was as if his body had suddenly stop working, for he could not find the strength to get back on his feet.

"SOREN!" Kludd screeched, as he saw his brother in trouble. He needn't be told twice as he quickly doubled back towards his brother…

Deathbringer was moments away from making contact. He did not care which of the two brothers he take down with him…but thinking back to his last defeat, he figured he would aimed for the younger brother, seeing how his guard was down, and…how tormenting it would be to take away one of the owls that the other owl, who claimed that he could escape the darkness (even though he had lost control of his puppet momentarily, he could still hear everything), will be. With that awful thought in his mind, he flick out his right talon, as his remaining silver blade flipped onto his talon as he prepare to go for the kill. His focus on the young Barn Owl was so great that he failed to notice Kludd approaching Soren…

As Kludd sped towards his brother, he couldn't help but notice how the evil owl was focusing on Soren, as if he was a delicious piece of meat, ripe for the eating. He also noticed how quick it was coming towards him as well. A problem suddenly arose in itself, much to Kludd's horror. Even if he was to get to his brother before Deathbringer, there would not be any time to get Soren out of the way before the dark owl come and slay them both…then a grave thought had inflicted itself upon Kludd, a thought that would put a end to the Deathbringer for good, but would come with a great sacrifice, a sacrifice more greater than anything other things he had given up in his life, a sacrifice that would not only hurt himself greatly, but will also hurt everyone around him. The thought itself was far too awful for him to think of, as it would rob him of his chance for redemption, but other choice did he have? Leaving him to die was something he could never do, and if he didn't do anything, Soren and probably him would die…this was the only way and it pained him to resort to it…but then he thought of the Two Brothers of the North…oh, how ironic it was, that his fate would go to match that of the older brother…but then he thought, if the older brother was willing to risk his life for his brother…he would do him proud by following in his talons…as he raised his sword, he dashed towards what was his fate…

Soren watched in horror, the hagsfiend's demonly screech ringing in his ear slits, as the demon himself was charging right at him with his sword that hungered for one's blood…his blood. Even if he could recover, there was no time to get away or even outrun the monster. All that the young Tyto Alba could do was close his eyes in horror and brace for the glaux-awful pain that would follow…

"MAURICE, NO!" Nyra screamed.

Then, in a matters of seconds, a loud screech and a sickening sound pierce throughout the air…

The young Tyto Alba's eyes still winced shut, when he started to hear a gagging sound…that was not from him. Then he heard another scream from Nyra, "KLUDD!"

Upon hearing the scream, Soren immediately opened his eyes to see in shock that in front of them…Kludd stood there, strong and firm, as he was face to face with the Deathbringer, whose eyes were suddenly widened, and was the source of the gagging sound…and the reason that sound was being made in the first place was because Kludd's bronze sword was now embedded in the heart of the Tyto Rosenbergii's body, blood now spurting out around the sword.

All that the Deathbringer could do was give a gaze of being stupefied as he stared the scarred Tyto Alba in the eyes, who in turn was glaring at the evil owl with courage and defiance in his eyes, his beak gritted in anger. The demon's mind had finally stopped playing it's tricks on him, for he no longer saw any snowy owls, but a little delusion remained, as the demon could see the eyes of the owl he had killed long ago, burning as much as they did thirty years ago. Even though he hated to concede defeat (for death was an impossibility for a hagsfiend), he couldn't help but give a silent nod of respect for the owl who denied darkness had managed to best him. With that the demon disappeared, as the Sulawesi Masked Owl's eyes reverted back to silver and the ownership of the body returned to that of Maurice…but it changed not his fate, for the consequences of the Deathbringer's actions were brought upon Maurice, for his life began to fade away. But he wasn't upset…he was actually glad…no longer will he hurt another soul because of his own darkness. Soon, if possible, he could reunite with Surtr, and make amends with him…as for Nyra…he believed that she was in good wings of the owl that ended his life. With tears now streaking from his eyes, surprising Kludd, Maurice with the remaining life he had left, uttered weakly with a smile, "Thank…you…"

With that, the Sulawesi Masked Owl's eyes fell shut for the last time as he fell back from Kludd's blade and onto the ground, with wings spread, and when he hit the ground, the battered helm of the mythical creature (**again, the helm looks like Giratina's Origin Forme head**) fell off with a thud a few inches. Maurice and Skarmoris was no more…

Soren was shocked by the turns of events, as well as Nyra, who watched from afar with the others. There were many things that Soren wanted to say to him, as he whispered, "Kludd, you did it…you defeated…" He stopped when he realized that his brother was now wobbling, "Kludd?"

Maurice meant what he said when he said that Nyra was in good wings. But what he did not realize was that Kludd wasn't the only one who had sent his blade through his foe, for blood also stained the black-winged owl's silver blade that was pulled out when he fell back…

Kludd's breathing started to grow heavy, and his beak was still gritted, but it was not from exertion or anger, but from the familar feeling known as pain that was now seizing his body. He then gingerly placed his right wing on his body and took a look at it, to only see how red it had become. Then the Barn Owl looked down at his body, to see a very bad wound, leaking blood steadily. The very sight of it was making Kludd woozy, as all he could say was, "That's…not…good."

"Kludd?" Nyra whispered, the knot in her heart growing tighter, as dread started to build within her again. The others were wondering as well what was going on one.

The scarred Barn Owl's body began to grow cold and soon his vision began to blur, the pain now disappearing from all the blood loss, as he then fell backwards, as the sudden screams of others were made, but the blood loss drowned it out. In fact, the only sound he could hear right now was the scream of his brother and his love interest…

"**KLUDD!**"

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**A/N: Oh, my god, this chapter was ABSOLUTE HELL! I know I said that about the past long chapters, but this one takes the frickin' cake. In this chapter, not only had I done in the entire army (well, not all of them ;)) but I brought down a PILLAR! Also, I had indeed incorporate a hagsfiend within the story, the second person behind TearfulFriend18 to do so. To make it more interesting, I brought the Deathbringer, the monster last mentioned in ch 10 in the story and ch 18 in Maurice's past. Hopefully I did a good job with the demon, for I did a lot of studying in the Ga'Hoolian universe, even included Nachtmagen in the form of Fulgrus (which is deprived from the latin word ****_Fulgur_**** which means lightning, hence what you had seen). And the silver swords becoming one long one was a tribute to Sephiroth's sword Masamune. Do not think that Deathbringer is the only hagsfiend within the series, for there will be many others making their debut later on. Also, some of the lines Deathbringer and Maurice had said were quoted from many villains, mostly from Kingdom Hearts's Lord Xehanort and Xemnas, Final Fantasy XII's Vayne Solidor (whose name inspired Solidor from chapter 15), one from Lion King's Scar and Dark Knight's Joker. The last few things I have to say is to be sure to read bluecatcinema's Siege of Ga'Hoole (which I may remind is not part of the series) and TearfulFriend18, if you are reading this, may this chapter inspire you to work on Blazing Inferno even harder. As for the cliffhanger on the end, will Kludd survive? That is for me to know and hopefully write out, and I hope the next chapter doesn't take me forever! So, READ AND REVIEW AND HAVE A HAPPY HOLIDAY!**

**(To Crazybird101: Before you go on a man hunt for me for doing something so awful to Kludd, I should have you know, I am somewhere where you will never find me! (Cue Jamacian music) Damn it! Cartman! We are trying to live on the lam!)**

"_Does this darkness have a name? This cruelty, this did it find us? Did it steal into our lives or did we seek it out and embrace it? What happened to us? That we now send our children out into the world like we send young men to war, hoping for their safe return but knowing that some will be lost along the way. When did we lose our way? Consumed by the shadows, swallowed whole by the darkness. Does this darkness have a name? Is it your name?_"

-_Lucas Scott, One Tree Hill Season 3, Episode 16, __With Tired Eyes, Tired Minds, Tired Souls, We Slept._

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated**_


	22. Regrets and Revelation

**A/N: Hello, everyone, I hope all of your Christmases had been bountiful this year, as for me, I got a few new games and stuff, but the most noteworthy thing I had gotten was the first book of Guardians of Ga'Hoole, The Capture. Quite honestly, I love the movie's Kludd over the book's Kludd, for the book make Kludd out to be an cruel insolent brat, while the movie's Kludd, despite how spiteful he was, had a bit of goodness in him. So here is the first update of 2013! Also, take note that the format of this chapter will be slightly different...**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole...if I did, this story would probably be its sequel.**

**I do not own any of the songs and their respective bands that will appear in this chapter**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl.**

**Note: I also want to give thanks to synchronized harmony again for helping me with this chapter. Also, we had broken the 200,000 words barrier!**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Two: Regrets and Revelation

_"If I wasn't here tomorrow, would anybody care? If my time was up, I wanna know, you were happy I was there."_

-a verse from Would It Matter by Skillet

-**A Fallen Hero**-

_"These are the times when doubts try to creep in, and I need a reason larger than life. When hope seems hard to find. If only I can fight a little longer, I know it's gonna make me stronger."_

Cold…spine-chilling, muscle-numbing cold…that was all that Kludd could feel. And to make matters worse, this was not brought upon by the chilly sea breeze of the cliff, no, it was from the blood that he was losing from his lower abdomen. That wound was caused by the owl that now lay dead in front of him, who died from an almost mirroring wound (but with all the other wounds that laced his body, his death was imminent). But regardless, the scarred Barn Owl's strength immediately abandoned him, his eyes shutting, as he fell to the ground with a soft 'thud', as the screams of his name, both from the owl he called his brother and from the one he loved to the end echoed in his ear slits.

Soren could not accept what had just happened, one moment, he and Kludd were about to return home, the next, the Deathbringer comes back for one more attack…and now, his brother was now bleeding out before him, as if it was a horrid nightmare…right now Soren really wished it was. Immediately, he rushed to his brother's side, still trying to deny what he was seeing, hoping that it was all a bad nightdream, but he saw all the blood staining the feathers around his wound, dashing that hope instantly.

"Kludd…this cannot be…" Soren whispered, his eyes immediately tearing up.

The elder brother winced his eyes as he opened them to face his younger brother, as he weakly whispered, "Soren…"

"Why, Kludd?" Soren whimpered, "Why did you take that attack? Why would you do something so glaux-damn stupid to yourself?!" He finished with a snarl, not intentionally angry, but upset.

Kludd gave a weak chuckle, "Because…like you had said to me…or as I said to you…brothers always look after each other…too bad I didn't realize that sooner."

"Don't talk like that!" The young brother ordered, as he tried to stop the wound, using his wings, applying pressure, anything that could help, as he stammered, "Ezylryb has…Ezylryb must have something-" He couldn't finish that sentence from his own desperateness taking a hold of him, as he heard, in a faint, distant corner of his mind, another owl rushing to the scene, but he didn't pay much attention.

Kludd was in a daze, as his body's adrenaline began to fail from the workout it had been put through. The full force of all his combined injuries was coming through…but oddly enough, all he could think of was that he had stupidly played a part in repeating history. It was a meaningless thought, but it kept circling around his head, over and over and over.

"Kludd!" A feminine voice screeched.

The scarred Barn Owl's thoughts were interrupted when he heard that voice, as he turned away from his brother's eyes to meet the eyes of his beloved, Nyra. The white barn owl, who had come as fast as she was able, couldn't help but choked back a scream as she saw the eyes of her loved one with life leaving them. The thought of death was perpetually running through her mind, no matter how many times she flung them back. Was this how it would end? After everything that they been through…together? NO! This cannot be! Not before Kludd had the chance to redeem himself…not before he could mend the bonds broken by pride…not before…they could be together. It was not fair! If anyone deserved to die, it was her! She was the one that unwittingly created (along with Surtr) Maurice into what he become, the one who that Kludd had given everything up for…and now, he was going to die! Her heart began to ache with hurt as tears began falling from her eyes…and to make matters worse, it was the same hurt that she had felt when Surtr had met his end.

Then suddenly, she heard Kludd's voice whispering, "N-Nyra?"

Nyra flinched when she heard that as she quickly looked at scarred Barn Owl in the eyes as she took Kludd's left wings into her own, "It's alright, Kludd, I'm here…" She shushed, trying to choke down the tears that were flowing.

But some thoughts plagued Kludd's mind, "Nyra…I had to do it…Maurice…he was going…" He couldn't finish the sentence as he felt a bit of shock coursing through his system.

"I know…" Nyra shakily replied, "It had to be done…just focus on holding on."

However, Kludd just chuckled, either from the words Nyra spoke or the pain, "Hold on? In case…you hadn't noticed…I don't think…I am in any…position to do so."

"Don't say that!" Nyra cried, "It is going to be all right, we can get Ezylryb, he can bandage you up, and we can…we can…" She could not say those last words as the weight of the situation at hand was growing more apparent to her, as she began to sob a little.

Approaching the three, Ezylryb and the band, along with the two Barn Owl's family, were quickly running up the cliff as soon as Kludd hit the ground after Nyra. But as they did, Ezylryb felt a horrible feeling stirred in his gizzard, a feeling that he was familiar with, but never wanted to feel…ever. Unfortunately, as he approached the three Barn Owls, he saw the mortified expression planted on Soren's face as well as the grief-stricken teary face of Nyra, thus proving one of his worst fears…

Dread invaded Noctus's mind, as he feared the worst for his son, praying with all his might that he had fallen from exhaustion, and that he was completely fine otherwise. But his prayers went unanswered, for he caught of a glimpse of red covering his eldest son, prompting his heart to skip a beat as his beak gaped from what he was now seeing. At the same time, Marella was thinking the same thing and when she noticed the blood, she couldn't help but bring her wings to her face and gasped in horror, as her eyes began to water once more.

The others were off-put by their reactions as they too soon saw the sight before them, as they all gave a gasp of shock as Gylfie placed her wings to her beak, Digger donned a sad expression, and Twilight closed his eyes in sorrow. Mrs. P, with Eglantine in her coils, was also mortified to see one of her own chicks (to her, they were) now dying before her eyes. Knowing such a sight would be too much for the little owlet to handle; she stopped in her place and hugged the owlet tightly. The band paused as well for the sake of not crowding the poor Barn Owl and out of respect for the owls that Kludd was important to (well, more important to be exact.)

Kludd's breathing was starting to grow weaker as he started to notice his father walking aside Nyra, who was still crying over him, as well as Marella and Ezylryb coming to Soren's side…he reckoned that they had Eglantine stayed behind…he knew that it would pained the little owlet to see her big brother in such a sorry state.

The Lyze of Keil was first to enquire, as he saw Kludd's wound, "Soren…what happened?"

The young Tyto Alba was despondent as he tried to explain, all the while keeping the wound suppressed, "I don't…don't know. One moment, Kludd and I were coming to meet you when Maur…Deathbringer came back…it just happened so fast." Ezylryb's eyes widened when he heard the name Deathbringer, wasn't that the name of Maurice's father? What exactly happened in their battle? Before the Screech Owl could think any further, Soren immediately pleaded, "Lyze…please, do something that will make him better…"

The Screech Owl frowned, as willing as he would obliged, the wound Kludd had was severe. Even if he could patch it up, he needed true medical help, help that he could not provide. It pained him to say it, but the young lad's chance of survival was slim to the point that there was practically no chance. He wanted to say, 'I'm sorry, but there is nothing I can do, Soren' but he knew deep down that he couldn't say that, as it would break Soren down deeper than he had been ever since the day Kludd became Metalbeak. So, instead, he said, "I'll see what I can do…" as he started to rummage through the worn satchel for some bandages.

Kludd, on the other hand, wanted to tell Ezylryb to not bother…his mind may be delusional by the blood loss, but even in the crushing grip of death, he could see that he was going to perish…what if this was his fate? What if this was Glaux's way of making him pay attrition for all the horrible acts that he had done? The wounded owl sighed inwardly, he did say to Deathbringer in the midst of their battle that he would pay the price, no matter the cost. Of course he never figured that it would be his life, but who was he to question the ways Glaux work? Then suddenly, a feel of panic spread through his thoughts as he knew that his time was short, and that he had so much left to say…

Noctus's heart wrenched as he saw the scene before him with pained eyes. Kludd was his son…yet he didn't feel that he, his father, belonged at his side. This was all his fault…if he had only paid more attention to his eldest son, seen the anger growing within him, then he wouldn't had been so driven to prove himself. Then none of this would have happen to him. Of course, that also meant that there would have been no one to stop Skarmoris and that could have led to…the elder Barn Owl shook his head, to explore all the could-have-beens was pointless. Now, perhaps he could finally atone, for this could be his last chance, for his negligence that he had afflicted upon his eldest son. Trying to keep a straight face, he walked forward, gently pushing Nyra aside, who looked up with confusion and possibly a hint of anger (or maybe he just imagined that). Trying to keep his son with them, he sternly order, "Kludd…don't you dare fade out on me, boy!"

Those stern words barely brought the young Tyto out of his stupor, but it was enough, just enough. "Da…I…"

"Don't talk, Kludd, don't talk…" The elder barn owl gasped, almost in as much panic as his son, "Hold on…you will be alright, son, you will…" Although he kept repeating it, for Kludd's sake, even he had begun to lose hope.

"No, Da…" Kludd's voice, weak and quivery, broke through the frantic bustle as battle claws through air. "I have to…to say something…I have to apologize…"

"No, you don't, Kludd, lay still!" Noctus ordered.

"No!" The scarred barn owl shot back, with surprising voice, shocking Nyra and Soren, as well as Ezylryb, but his parents were most surprised, sending him into a rack of coughs, "I have to, Da! Don't…don't interrupt me!"

Noctus sighed with pained exasperation. Even in the throes of death, Kludd was still stubborn as he ever was… "Fine, son…just don't strain yourself…"

"Da…" Kludd began, his voice feeling weak, as if he couldn't get enough breath into it, "I want to say…I'm sorry…I'm sorry that I was such a lousy son and…and I'm sorry for leaving you all behind…and for everything else I have done since then…I'm just so sorry…" Kludd whispered, with tears in his eyes, angry at a thing called time that sucked his words away. Those words nearly shattered the father's heart as drops of bitter sadness fell from his eyes. Why did he need to apologize? It was he, his father that failed him. The moment he saved Eglantine and stay behind to face Skarmoris already earned his forgiveness…

"Kludd…" Marella whimpered, hurting to see one of her chicks dying before her eyes. Not once had she ever thought that he was a horrible son, a bit misguided and difficult at times, but never horrible.

"There were so many things I wanted to do before…" Kludd couldn't bring himself to say it, "But I am afraid I am out of time…" The edges of his vision now were unseeable. So this was it? The final drawing in of the net called death? Was this all? He would laugh, had he not so much else to do…

"Don't say that!" Ezylryb snarled, as he fished out the bandages, and started wrapping around the wound, slightly pushing Soren away to do so, "I seen owls more worse for wear than this! I know you can pull through this, you must!" As much as he wanted to believe those words himself, even he started to feel despair…

"Lyze…" Kludd muttered, "I just want to say thank you…for believing in me…despite…"

"It was the least I could do, lad." The Screech Owl admitted, "But I know you can rise above this! You just can't…" He didn't finish, for tears threaten his eyes as well. This was the Battle of the Ice Claws all over again, except with a much horrible ending.

"Sorry, sir, but that is one order I cannot fulfill…I just wanted to say that it was an honor serving with you." The scarred Barn Owl weakly smiled before coughing more…

"NO!" Nyra cried, tears streaming down her face, "Please, Kludd, you can't die! I don't want to lose you like Metalbeak…it's not fair that you die with so much regrets…because of me."

"Oh, Nyra…" Kludd sighed, as more tears were shed from his failing eyes, "If I had the chance to go back…to that day we met…I would have still deny knowing my brother…no offense, Soren." Soren still remained despondent, "Because, if it meant being king and being close to you, I would do it all over again…" This brought even more tears to the white Barn Owl's eyes, "I only wish we could have been together…"

All these words proven too much for the once queen, as she sobbed even harder, her anguish becoming more apparent than ever. It pained Kludd to see her in such a state, but there was little he could do to sooth her now. Only one thing still lingered in his mind, as he turned to face his brother, whose wings were now bloodied from trying to cover his wound, his expression was of sheer pain, an expression he thought he would never see his brother donned. Gathering up the rest of his dwindling strength, Kludd whispered, "Soren…there is so much I want to say sorry for…but I am afraid that all I can say is I'm sorry I couldn't be the brother you and Eglantine deserved…"

But Soren wouldn't hear of it as he then responded, tears now pouring as well, "No…stop apologizing…I meant it when I said I would always forgive you…but you are going to live, brother…all of us, me, you, Eglantine, ma, da, and even Nyra can all come back to Ga'Hoole, and we can be the way we were when we were owlets. Just stop beating yourself for what happened…"

A tear streamed down the scarred owl's face, as he said with a sad smile, "Soren…as much as I would love to be a part of that wondrous future…it is something that is just not meant for me…"

"Brother…" Soren whimpered.

"Please tell Eglantine that her big brother won't be coming home…but that he loves her…"

"S-Son…" Noctus stuttered, his words being caught in his throat.

"But one thing that I must say to you is this…" Kludd sighed, suddenly feeling it. The final drawing. His vision was fading completely…but there was just…just one thing more…that must be said. "I…love you, Soren…"

"Kludd, no, KLUDD!" Soren screech without control, as his older brother stiffened, his eyes closing. And as if his body was possessed, he tried to stir him awake,"STAY WITH ME! PLEASE!"

His pleadings went unanswered, as Kludd lay motionless before him, his parents, Ezylryb, and Nyra all watching with heartbreak and grief the brother trying to wake him up. Soren then placed his ear hole to his chest, and, to his relief but continuing anguish, he felt a faint heart beat. He drew back, with the help of Lyze, breathing heavily with tears in his eyes, "I love you too…"

"Lad…I'm really sorry…" Ezylryb apologized, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"No." Soren denied with desperateness creeping in his voice, "He's still alive! We can save him!"

"Son…we are in the middle of nowhere. Even if we can get him back to Ga'Hoole, it will be too late." Noctus tried to reason, knowing how hurt he was.

"That's doesn't mean we can't try! He wouldn't have given up on us, so I am not giving up on him!" The young son snarled, not in defiance against his father, but in the name of determination.

"Soren…" Nyra quivered, trying to compose herself, "I-I want to save Kludd as much as you do, but…not even Glaux himself can make it possible…" As more tears fell from her eyes.

The young Guardian growled in frustration, how could Glaux let this happen? Why did he bother gifting him with starsight, giving him dreams where Kludd would become a Guardian and be happy when all he was going to do was have Kludd killed trying to save him? For a matter of fact, why would Samuel, being the starseer he was, set him up for such heartbreak? Did he know this was going to happen and not tell him? Or was it his superior that did not tell him? Those questions were meaningless. As he eyed his brother, he fell to his knees, nearly shattered in hopelessness. Nothing short of a miracle could save him now…

The band and Mrs. P watched with sadness the scene in front of them, as they saw the anguish in the parents', Soren's, Nyra's, and even Ezylryb's eyes that a horrible fate had befallen probably the bravest owl, even more brave than Twilight, that they met.

Gylfie merely hid her tears as she embraced Digger once more, burying her face into the Burrowing Owl's chest as she silently sobbed, all the while Digger himself, downtrodden by such a tragedy, tried to sooth her like he did back in the pillar, but he could not help but share her sorrow as well.

Twilight was never one to cry, for all his life, he was an orphan, moving from home to home, teaching himself all the skills he needed. Still, he never forgotten how he was raised by woodpeckers, an elderly eagle, and even a bunch of desert foxes (which led him to swore off eating their kind), but even all his hardships couldn't prepare him for losing someone, especially someone he barely knew (and was a bit of an arrogant arse, he must admit), heck, he wouldn't like to think of what happen if Digger, who he had learned to call a young brother despite their differences. Nonetheless, he felt water in his eyes as he closed his eyes in sorrow once more.

Mrs. P was the one out of six (Eglantine included) who took it the hardest, as she let out audible wails of grief. Normally, she was composed when it came to a death of someone, but to know that it was an owl you had raised from his egg, it practically struck her like a lightning bolt. She knew that she shouldn't let Eglantine see her in such a state, but the tragedy in itself was just so awful…

An awful feeling came through the little owlet as she saw how her nursemaid and the others were acting, as well as seeing the ways that her parents and brother, and even Eazelly and Nyra were behaving, she knew that something awful had happened to her brother Kludd. Being the young six years old owlet she was, she didn't understand most things, but death was one thing she was taught. Death meant the end of an owl's life, whether it was from old age, disasters, or by the hands of another owl, and somehow, her gizzard giving her such a horrid feeling. Was it telling her that something bad happened to her brother that she was never going to ever see him smile again? That thought made Eglantine quiver with fear, how could that be? In all the stories that her parents, Soren, and Mrs. P told her, the heroes always prevailed over evil, no matter how bad it seemed. Wasn't Kludd considered good, despite all that he done? None of this made sense, she sincerely thought that most owls were deserving of second chances, so why wasn't Kludd?

Before she could try to ponder such a question much too complicated for someone her age, she heard a voice quite unfamiliar to her, calling her name, "_Eglantine…Eglantine, look behind you…_"

Quite perturbed by the voice, she wiggled around Mrs. P's coils to see where it was originating from. To her surprise, she saw a snowy owl, just standing there, with a sincere smile on his face. At first, she thought it would have been the king or queen of Ga'Hoole, but given how he wasn't donning any armor and claws and how…unruffled his feathers looked by the storm that was wreaking havoc earlier, she knew that this was a different owl. If not them, then who was the owl? And why was he smiling? She was moments away from addressing the owl when the old Bubo Scandiacus (**species's scientific name**) continued:

"_Do not fear, young one, everything will be okay, just believe and everything will be set right…_"

With that, the owl suddenly began to fade away, much to the young owlet's shock, as she rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing anything, but by the time she looked again, he was gone. She was now even more confused, what did he mean by how everything will be set right? Did he know how to save her brother…if so, why did he suddenly vanish? Eglantine shook her head; it was no use trying to understand it, besides…she felt something else in her gizzard when she heard his words, a feeling of hope. She may not know who he was…but whether it was her childish naivety or belief in what he said was true, she felt that they might be truth to the old owl's words…

Suddenly, as if out of nowhere, a silent but strong burst of warm wind began to spread throughout the skies, so silent that it would have gone unnoticed had not Soren, despite how close to despair he was, not hear the sounds of the feeble branches of the dead trees stirring within the winds. Immediately he jerked up, prompting Ezylryb to ask, "Soren, lad, what is it?"

"Don't you hear that, sir? The winds?" The barn owl asked, "It sounds very strong…"

Just as Ezylryb was about to deny, he also began to hear it, as he then gave his right wing a quick lick and raised it to the sky, immediately snapping the parents and Nyra out of their grief-stricken state as Nyra asked incredulously, "What in hagsmire are you doing?"

The Whiskered Screech Owl ignored her as he then said to himself, "I don't believe it…"

The band, no longer hearing the cries, immediately looked up as they saw Ezylryb raising his wing and making that exclaim as Gylfie, still sniffling a little, asked, "Sir, what is it?"

"It's a thermal…and judging by the trees, a damn good one…" The Lyze answered.

"A thermal?!" Digger exclaimed, "I may not be no expert in weather interpreting but…how could there be a thermal near a sprinking ocean?!" Indeed, thermals were warm drafts of air most commonly found within landlocked and barren lands. Digger himself when he used to live around in Kuneer usually got swept by such winds, but to find them near a ocean? In the aftermath of a storm? That was impossible!

"I am just as confused as you are, Digger." Ezylryb admitted, "In all my years as being ryb of weather interpretation and colliering chaw, I never seen something so peculiar."

Soren however began thinking as soon as he heard the word 'thermal', for he thought, "_A thermal…I wonder why in all the places and the time…_" Soren immediately froze, as he realized something, what were the odds of there being such winds right now, as his brother was dying? Could it possibly be that this was…a sign?

Not wasting time, he asked, "Sir, how long you reckon it is back to Ga'Hoole?"

The Screech Owl immediately turned to the barn owl as he sighed, "Soren, there isn't enough…"

"Sir, please! How long is it?!" Soren demanded.

Surprised by the barn owl's order, he merely answered, "Three hours at least through the Talon's Breach, but what are you getting…?"

"How long would it be if we were to take the thermals?" The young Tyto Alba interrupted.

That question immediately perked the others' interest, especially Nyra, as Ezylryb, starting to catch onto what he was saying, "Well, if we added our own wingbeats to the winds and take it that it stays that way all the way home, we should be able to get there in a hour…"

"Then…" Soren continued, as hope finally began to grow back within him, as he eyed his brother, "There is still time…we can still save him!"

"Son, you don't honestly think…" Noctus tried to say, not wanting to live on false hope, "Kludd lost a lot of…I don't think time is…"

"Father, I can still hear his heartbeat." The young son stated, "As long as Kludd's heart beat carries on, there is still time. And even if I have to carry him on my back, I will do what I can to save him!" He finished with ember of determination roaring in his eyes.

"Soren…" Nyra whispered, as her agonizing grief started to fade slowly, hope beginning to rise within her as well…possibly for the first time in a long time, "Do you think that it is really possible?"

"I don't know…" The young guardian admitted, "But if it means saving Kludd…then I am willing to go the distance!"

"Words well spoken, lad!" The old Screech Owl cheered as he then started helping his apprentice with picking Kludd up, "Although you should leave the carrying to Twilight." He snarkily added.

Noctus was shocked that Ezylryb was even acting the same as Soren, "Lyze, what are you doing?!"

"The young lad is right! We haven't a moment to lose! If we can just catch the thermal, it should get back to Ga'Hoole in time to save him, and damn it, I am not leaving a man behind! That, Noctus, my friend, is Guardianship 101…" Ezylryb explained.

The father however was a bit reluctant, "But what if…"

"Ezylryb is right!" Twilight bellowed, his spirit renewed "Not once in my year as a Guardian had I ever left a fellow owl hanging!"

"Yeah, if Kludd was willing to nearly get himself eaten by a snake to save my tailfeathers, the least I can do is make sure he has a shot at living." Digger agreed, despite Kludd's true intention was to get his battle claws.

"Wait, he did what?!" Noctus exclaimed in surprise.

"I couldn't had said it better myself, Digger!" Gylfie smiled, envigored by this newfound hope as well.

"Guys…" Soren whispered, as he then gave a nod, "Thank you all very much…"

"Don't thank them yet, lad. If we are going to pull this off, we need to get flying!" Ezylryb ordered, as he then turned to Noctus, "Come on, Noctus…I know you are scared…I am, too, but we must try…"

Noctus agreed with him, but there was a part of him that didn't want to be set up for major heartbreak should Kludd…he couldn't finish that thought, but as he then looked to Marella and Mrs. P who were no longer crying but were now giving him pleading eyes telling him not to give up. He then turned to Eglantine, as she was giving him those eyes as well. As soon as he saw those eyes, he knew that they weren't ready to give up on Kludd yet…and maybe, if it meant getting a second chance of making amends with his son, neither is he. Letting out a heavy sigh and with a nod, he said, "You're right…where there's a will, there's a way."

Ezylryb smiled at the father, "Now that's what I want to hear" He then turned to Twilight, "Twilight, hopefully you can carry Kludd on your back?"

"When a tree falls in a forest, does it make a sound?" Twilight confidently answered, prompting an awkward silence from the Whiskered Screech Owl. Deflated, he just said, "Yes. Just get the lad on and we will be on our way."

"Good to hear, Soren, Digger, you get on one side, me and Noctus will get the other! Come on, we haven't a moment to lose!" The Lyze commanded, as he, Soren, Noctus, and Digger instantly gathered around Kludd, and with the utmost care that they could muster (especially on Digger's part, given how klutzy he was), they picked his body up, and slowly moved it onto Twilight's back. Then, reaching into Alice's satchel once more, Ezylryb pulled out some bandages as he tightly wrapped Kludd's lower waist and Twilight to ensure that the barn owl stayed upon the Great Gray during flight.

Nyra merely watched as they did so, for despite how hope was making its way into her heart, there still laid a shroud of worry, when Gylfie then walked to her side and said, "It will be okay, Nyra…Kludd can make it, I know he will."

"I know…but…" Nyra trailed off, for there were thoughts pertaining to what would become of the two in the future given how she was considered one of the greatest enemies to the Guardians and Kludd…well, he was family to one of their own, they would accept him…but her…it pained her to think about it.

Gylfie, being the observant one she was, she could tell what was truly bothering her, "Look, I know you are worried…but I know that Kludd will want to wake up to see you at his side, and I doubt the Guardians would stop you from being there."

The white Barn Owl sadly smiled at Gylfie, she certainly wouldn't argue with her reasoning, but still, it didn't clear the worries that plagued her soul. However, it was no use worrying about it, no use at all, especially when Ezylryb screeched, "Come on, everyone! There's no telling when this thermal might vanish! Get into flight formation immediately!" Nyra let out a sigh, it seems like those worries would have to wait till later…

Immediately, the eight owls got into formation, as Ezylryb took the front, with Twilight (and Kludd) behind him, and boxing him in, Soren was on Twilight's right and Nyra's on Twilight's left. Taking the two fronts aside Ezylryb were Digger and Gylfie, and (with a bit of guidance from the Screech Owl), Noctus and Marella, with Mrs. P and Eglantine within their respective talons, took up the rear. This kind of formation was effective in travel as it would keep them in a tight-knit group all the while, should Twilight falter in his flight (although Twilight would deny being capable of doing so), someone would be able to stabilize him.

As Ezylryb did a last-minute flight check, Nyra gave one last look to her beloved, as he lied on the Great Gray's back, trapped within the confines of unconscious reality, whispering, "Do not worry, my love, it won't be long…just hold on…" After those words, she gave a glance to Soren who was on the other side, as his eyes met her. Despite all of their differences and the animosity between them, there lied one great similarity between them that made it all the worth to put them all aside…Kludd was the greatest of influences and value to both of them, for he was Soren's brother and Nyra's love, whose lives would have not been worth two pellets without him. Now, his life was hanging in the balance, and damn it, he will live! These thoughts cycling through both their minds, the two barn owls gave a nod.

"Okay, everyone! Despite how grave our situation is, there are procedures…" Ezylryb sternly reminded, as he then sounded off, "Wings?"

Everyone spreaded their wings, as Gylfie screeched, "Check!"

"Talons?"

Talons were moved into positions as Noctus, wanting to take part in the sound-off, shouted "Check!"

"Tailf-?"

"Oh for glaux's sake, is now really the time?!" Nyra snarled, despite how illuminating this journey had been, she still lacked patience, especially in high-strung situations such as this.

Ezylryb merely looked at the barn owl planning on scolding her, but he opted against it, since she did have a point. "Very well, Nyra. Guardians, Pure Ones, and innocent bystanders, to the sky, we FLY!"

And with that, the owls, starting with Ezylryb, started flapping their wings as hard as they can, ascending into the unusual thermal that blew throughout the clouded skies, and as soon as they were of correct altitude, the group suddenly started lurching forward, much to their surprise. But fortunately, this surprising increase of speed was nothing to fret over, as there was a life to save, and as repeated many times, there wasn't a moment to lose…

Nyra gave one last look back at the Hagsfiends' Sea, where the ghost of the Pillar of Supremacy seemingly lingered and where her dead friend lied, wings spread, as both of them grew smaller and smaller as they flied further away. With one last tear, she whispered, "Good-bye, Maurice…I will never forget you…" And with that final good-bye, the group left the place strifed with so many bad memories towards a better horizion…

* * *

-**The Forgotten Squadron**-

_"You told me yes, you held me high, and I believed when you told that lie, I played soldier, you played king, and struck me down when I kissed that ring!"_

The Talon's Breach had always been a common travel route even before the times of the Pure Ones, as it's winding canyons served as an easy, accessible passageway between many locales within the territories. However, given how nearly no vegetation grew within the barren canyons, it was uncommon to run into any owl during flight through this place, thus making any wayward travelers easy picking for thieves, murderers, and worse. Despite this, owls traveled it anyway, just hoping that lady luck would smile in their favor…

However, there were life in the canyons right now, as there was a group of soliders perched upon many of the over hanging rocks not far from where the Pillar of Supremacy once stood. These soldiers just so happened to be a group of Pure Ones themselves. You are probably confused as to why there were still Pure One soldiers aside from Nix, Jatt, and Jutt when it seemed that all the soldiers were crushed under the mighty pillar, and why Skarmoris was certain that they were none of his army left…well, the answer to that question is quite simple.

Four nights back, when Skarmoris had taken control of the Pure Ones and had returned to the Pillar of Supremacy (which some of the older members remembered as their original headquarters), the Sulawesi Masked Owl had made a command that a group of soldiers stand guard in the Talon's Breach to await Kludd, as he believed he would come back to try and reclaim his throne. Of course, the owl could not count on a certain echidna telling the said owl that they were waiting for him, and given how fast the events had transpired at the pillar, the squadron that was posted in the Talon's Breach was either forgotten…or Skarmoris feared that the group of soldiers that he talon-picked were still loyal to their old master and their queen so he sent them to a spot where he made sure that they could not tap into the power of the Cannabis Regime…

So lied waiting on the rocks for a group of owls that were not coming were the soldiers. One of them in question was just standing at the point of an arch, keeping an constant vigil for anyone that might come their way. His body was well-toned and covered in a few scars, obviously inflicted by battle, helmed in a typical Pure One helmet and possessing the typical red eyes that most of them had. This owl in question was none other than Uglamore, a barn owl lieutenant of the Pure Ones army, trained by Lord Surtr years before his coronation and becoming of Metalbeak, and one of the strongest soldiers in the army. He was one of those soldiers that never questioned authorities, no matter how much he disagreed with them, and if he was given an order, he would fulfill it without question. It was this kind of loyalty that made him a favorite of Metalbeak and Nyra back then, and even a favorite of Kludd when he took the reins, for he was strong, smart, and driven, a prime example of a perfect soldier. Uglamore never had any quarrels with the leaders he had, for the leaders he had were great leaders in his opinion, Surtr, even when he became the evil Metalbeak, was one to never back down against adversaries and given how he was trained by him, the Tyto Alba had great respect for him. Kludd, even though he was young and slightly inexperienced, was the same way, and as his queen said before, he held exceptional potential…

But when he first saw Skarmoris…he felt something in his gizzard that gave him a bad feeling towards the owl, and the fact that he usurped Kludd from a throne rightfully passed down to him and turned all of the soldiers against him and Nyra only hardened it. So, when Skarmoris requested volunteers for guard duty, Uglamore eagerly stepped forth, as he didn't want to associate himself with someone who had no honor within him. Yes, even Pure Ones had honor, although in comparison to the Guardians, honor was like awaiting snow in the middle of summer, and Uglamore held no respect for those who just use strength for intimidation. Regardless though, he still a loyal soldier and it was his own code to follow his leader, no matter what he thought of him, so here he was, watching for his old leaders, so that he and the others could apprehend them…

"Any sign of them, yet, Uglamore?" A voice asked (**This voice is that of Ted Lewis, who played Jack Atlas in Yugioh 5Ds and Giovanni in the Pokemon series**).

The lieutenant let out a frustrated sigh as he turned around to be faced with another barn owl of a weaker build and fewer scars, also wearing a Pure One helm and donning red eyes as well. "No, Wortmore, there is no sign of them, like I had said about an hour ago." Uglamore grumbled, his voice gruff and low. (**His voice is of Bryan Cranston, who voiced Vitaly from Madagascar 3 and played Hal in Malcolm in the Middle, but so that you are not confused, his voice is like Vitaly**)

"Well excuse me, Mr. Grumpy, I was just wondering…" Wortmore growled. This foul-tempered owl was Wortmore, another lieutenant of the Pure Ones army. Unlike Uglamore, who was always serious in his line of work, Wortmore was laid-back. This often led to butting of heads between the two, so much in fact, it was a wonder why these two were here together. That answer was simple, for Wortmore didn't trust Skarmoris either, but not because of a bad feeling he had (he was not that intelligent), but because he only had loyalty to one owl and that owl was Nyra. It was not because he was attracted to her (Make no mistake, he was) but because she had trained him when he first joined the Pure Ones, he cared not for Surtr nor Kludd (but followed since he was king), but when Skarmoris came and banished Nyra, he wanted nothing to do with him. Still, Wortmore would have preferred not being stuck with Uglamore…

"You were wondering the last four nights. If you are so concerned about when Metalbeak is coming, why don't you go on lookout?" Uglamore snarled.

"Because I find it stupid that we are on a lookout for our true leaders for some dumb random owl."

"That 'dumb random owl' had happened to kill many of our numbers single-handily; it would do you good not to mouth off about your superiors…" Another voice sagely quipped (**This is the voice of Joe Mantegna who plays David Rossi in Criminal Minds**).

The two barn owls looked behind them to see yet another barn owl, who unlike the two, wasn't wearing a helmet, but had a long scar running along his right cheek, and furthermore, had a chest laced with them. His eyes however, were red as well. This owl was named Stryker, who was also a lieutenant, not to mention a trainer of soldiers. In fact, he was the one who had trained Kludd when he was just a soldier in the army. It would go to say that Stryker was proud when that owl he had trained had become king (not that he wasn't loyal to his leaders before), and it did him great pleasure to serve under him. So when the Sulawesi Masked Owl came and took over, Stryker was appalled by his audacity and was deeply intimidated by his mastery in swordsmanship. So intimidated in fact that he dared not insult him, even when he is not in their presence.

"Superiors?! This owl just came in and took over! Even you must realize how yoicks that is!" Wortmore snarled.

"I do realize it, but who are we to disobey? Did you see the way he fought? He was like a hagsfiend!" Stryker exclaimed.

"Hagsfiend magsfiend! Our loyalty is to Metalbeak and Nyra, not him! I just feel wrong betraying them!" Wortmore argued.

"As do I, Wortmore," Stryker admitted, "But we made an oath to serve the Pure Ones, and like it or not, Skarmoris is our king now, to go against him would mean sudden death!"

"Stryker is right, Wort." Uglamore agreed, "As much as I deeply respected Metalbeak and Nyra…this is far out of our wings. Unless someone defeats Skarmoris, we will just have to live with the fact that bloody sprink is our king."

Wortmore was about to argue that point, but even his smaller brain could process that there was nothing they could do. He just let out an sigh as he turned around and grumbled, "I don't like it."

Uglamore gave yet another sigh as he returned to watching over the route,when Stryker, who was still standing where he was, just said, "Do you think that Kludd would come back to face Skarmoris?"

The veteran Tyto shrugged, "Your guess is good as mine, but given how we seen nothing for the past four nights, it seems like our old king might not show. A real-" He stopped mid-sentence when he suddenly heard something…

Stryker noticed his pause, "Uglamore? What is it?"

"I don't know…" Uglamore muttered, as he turned towards the direction of the Pillar, "But it seems to be coming from the Pillar…"

The lieutenant was right for the most part, when suddenly, a major breeze blew through the canyon, slightly knocking the two lieutenants off balance as well as most of soldiers, who were further down along the rocks. All the while, a certain group of owls passed through, not taking heed of all the soldiers that were perched around them, as they carried on through the Talon's Breach un-noticed…but it left the two owls in utter stupefaction.

Wortmore immediately sped up to where Stryker and Uglamore were, as he quickly look where the group had went, screeching, "What the sprinking hagsmire was that?!"

"I don't know…but whoever they were…" Stryker said, confused as Wortmore was, "They are long gone…what says you, Uglamore?" He added as he turned to the older Barn Owl.

The veteran did not answer, not out of ignorance, but of sheer confusion…even though he got only a small glimpse, it was enough to shock him, for he saw a glimpse of pure white…there was only one owl that he knew that was that shade of white…it was none other than the mate of the owl he had once served, Nyra…but how could that be? How could have Nyra gotten past them without any of them noticing? And who were the other owls she was traveling with? And where was she going? He did not know the answers to any of those questions…

But indeed, Uglamore did see Nyra, as our group of heroes continued their way through the barren canyons. Focused on getting home as fast as the wind and their very wings could carry them, they paid no heed to their surroundings, hence why none of them dare look back to see the soldiers, confused by their sudden passing by, for there was a life to save. With that in mind, the group pressed onwards, not taking note of the landscape below them, for it had morphed from craggy rocks and infertile lands back into the tall beautiful trees and streams, to signify the departure of the Pure Ones' territory and flying into lands of Ga'Hoole. And sure enough, about a half hour later, the owls found themselves approaching the shrine that stood proud before Hoolemere…

The echidna was pacing back and forth outside his home, in fact, he was pacing since the storm from earlier tonight had begun to unleash its fury. Yes, it would seem rather unusual that a creature like him would be pacing around in a storm, crazy even, but the echidna had a lot on his mind to be fretting over a 'little rain'. It was earlier that night when the echidna sensed something dark emanating from far, far away, and given how he had sent a group of heroes to face against this 'something', he could feel in his quills that the group had arrived at the Pillar, and that the two brothers were about to face the said 'something'. However, he felt something was off when that feeling in his quills suddenly stops, as if there was some unnatural force interfering with his prophesizing ability, an occurrence that had never happen to the sage before. So for the past few hours, the echidna nervously paced around, worrying deeply for the heroes as well as the family that got dragged into danger many hours before the storm (as he, with great fear, foretold that a trio of miscreants would kidnap them). But suddenly, as if out of nowhere, the echidna's quills began to quiver, immediately freezing the shaman, as he hastily went up to his perch where he normally went to ponder, to see if his quills were actually true…and sure enough, he saw a few shadows growing in the distance…

But much to the creature's relief, he recognized from afar the feathers of the Guardians that he had given guidance to only a few nights before. As they approached his shrine, the echidna prepare to raise his staff to address the owls and shout, 'I foretold you so!' as he had done a year back when Metalbeak was defeated…but just as he was about to do so…another feeling overcame him, a feeling that was not natural yet felt so familiar…and that feeling seemed to worsen as the owls just flew overhead him, without taking notice of him at all. The echidna merely looked in the direction of the group that flew past him, as he realized that the awful motility that he was sensing was none other than…_death_…and being the prophet he was, he knew whose life was fading fast…and all he could say, as he looked to the sky, "…Oh my…this certainly was not foretold at all…"

* * *

-**The Tree And The Revelation**-

_"Free me, before I slip away, heal me, wake me from this day, somebody help me!"_

For the first time that night, moonlight finally started to shine its way through the stormy clouds that surrounded the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole all night, as if it was to signify the fall of a great evil and the triumph of good…but unfortunately, this signification was unknown to the denizens of the mortal world, as a feeling of fear and worry loomed around the tree. It was but a short while ago that three Pure Ones managed to find the place claimed to only be found by those true of heart and strong of mind, and taken four of their own to glaux-knows-where. Of course a rescue mission was in the planning, but soon after the kidnapping was discovered, the tree was engulfed in a powerful maelstrom, and to fly in such a storm would be life-threatening, the Guardians were grounded, powerless to do anything but pray and hope for the best.

One of the Guardians was just doing that, as Otulissa, Soren's beloved, was waiting atop one of the tree's highest branches, keeping vigil for any signs of her 'knight' and the band, praying that they would return safely. She had been up on the perch all night, not even coming down to eat or rest, despite the insistence of other owls. Not even her teacher Strix Struma could sooth her, as even she was worried for the owls as well (for she happened to have feelings for one of them as well).

The young female let out a heavy sigh as she whispered, "Come on, Soren…where are you?"

The past few hours had not been the best for her, for thousands and thousands of horrible thoughts went through her head, all of them a possible scenario as to what might been happening to Soren right now, from him being surrounded by Pure Ones to being severely wounded and dying to him being stabbed in the back by Metalbeak…of course, she remembered Strix telling her the other night to not think so little of the Pure Ones, despite how awful they were, but honestly, she could not help it. She still didn't understand why Soren was so willing to help Metalbeak, given how most of his vileness was directed towards him; at first, she just reckoned that Soren was just being honorable, like she knew him to be…but as she thought about it, she couldn't help how strange Soren acted when the two met…the two seemed to have some sort of a connection about them, and she knew that it was something more than rivalry…in fact, the more she thought about it, she remembered one instance that troubled her the most…

**Flashback starts **(**This scene belongs to bluecatcinema's New Beginnings**)

Otulissa let out a series of pants as she rubbed her head from a headache she just gotten when she rammed Metalbeak into a rotten tree stump. She knew that she was not supposed to be there, given how she was not a true-fledged Guardian yet, but the worries she had when Primrose came crashing in on the Milkberry Festival with a ransom notice asking for Soren and his friends only made it impossible to even dare staying behind while Soren could be in danger…especially how he was about to say something to her before Primrose's 'entrance'…and her worries were proven to be correct when she saw Soren at the mercy of one of them (though she was shocked to see Metalbeak's helm). Fortunately, she and the other Guardians were quick enough to save Soren and the hostages as she single-handily blindsided the leader. The short-eared owl turned to face the above-mentioned owl, who was surprised to see her.

"Otulissa?" Soren said in an astonished tone, "What are you doing here?"

The short-eared owl merely gave a short smile as she sarcastically replied, "Some greeting. What, no 'Hello'? No 'Thanks for saving my life?'"

"Oh, I'm grateful, of course…" Soren stammered, trying to not sound ungrateful, "But why did you come all the way out here?"

Otulissa suddenly froze when he asked that question. She had always had a bit of a crush on the barn owl when she first met him, and as the months since Metalbeak's death passed by, that crush only grew more intense. Trying not to blush, she looked at her talons, "I just…had to make sure you were okay." She confessed, as she then looked at Soren, "We still have our dance to finish, remember?" Indeed, before the Pygmy Owl appeared, they were in the middle of a dance when Soren tried to say something.

The barn owl, obviously remembering that, just smiled as he rubbed his head, "Yeah…we do."

"How touching…" A gruff voice snarled.

Before Otulissa could react, she immediately found herself pinned to the ground with talons at her neck, as she saw the owl she struck looking down at her with furious eyes.

"You dare to touch me, you inferior piece of filth?!" Metalbeak screamed in her face, "I, a Tyto, your better?!" Otulissa was genuinely horrified, as she saw the red eyes of her captor. It was one thing to be brave when going off to battle, but an entirely different thing to be faced with one up-close.

"Leave her alone, Kludd!" The barn owl protested, obviously frightened, "It's me you want!"

"Quite right, brother." The dark owl sneered as he lifted his head to face him, "So if it's all the same to you, I think I'll just snap her neck and be done with it."

The female owl knew at that moment that something snapped in Soren's mind, when the barn owl roared, "NO!" and immediately rammed into Metalbeak full on and with reckless abandon…

**Flashback ends**

Remembering that moment sent a shiver down Otulissa's spine. That moment was sincerely one of the scariest moments in her life, but it was also that moment she fell truly in love with the barn owl. But as she remembered that moment, she couldn't help but think of what was said between him and Metalbeak.

"_Leave her alone, Kludd! It's me you want!_"

Kludd…that name seemed to ring a bell…wasn't that the name of Soren's older brother? She recalled how Soren always seemed to avoid talking about him, especially when he had told the story four nights back. She just figured that the memories were just too painful, for as far as she was concerned, he was dead, killed by the ones who had kidnapped him…but then the voice of that evil owl echoed in her head…

"_Quite right, brother… so if it's all the same to you, I think I'll just snap her neck and be done with it._"

Brother, she knew that the dark owl had called Soren 'brother'. And the way that he had said it was not at all figurative or metaphorical. Otulissa merely gasped at the realization, "_Brother…can it be that Soren's Kludd…could be…?_" The short-eared owl shook the thought from her head. That was completely preposterous, it was certainly obvious that this Metalbeak just so happened to be named Kludd, and the term 'brother' was some sort of sick endearment. But still, that thought lingered; why else would Soren be so skittish? Was he trying to defend him or something? Otulissa merely sighed in frustration; she was going to get a headache trying to figure it out, and she honestly didn't want to stack on her exhaustion from watching for hours on end.

Suddenly, she heard a screech echoing in the skies, nearly causing her to fall off her perch. She knew that cry anywhere…and it immediately made her heart leaped for sheer joy. That cry meant that Soren and the others were coming home. She quickly looked up and sure enough, she saw the shadows coming towards the tree…

Not wasting time, the short-eared owl rushed down through the tree, as she poked her head into many of the hollows, letting everyone know that Soren and the others had returned. It was only mere moments before Otulissa was out by the entrance, eagerly awaiting the return of her beloved and the others. And to tell the truth, she wasn't the only one, as Strix Struma suddenly stepped up aside her and asked, "So, is the word around the tree true? Are they…?"

"True?" Otulissa finished, "Yes…I just know it."

Strix herself was now beaming with so much happiness that she would have leapt for joy, but given how she was supposedly composed, she merely smiled, not bothering to hide her relief, "Not that I was worried. I knew they would come back."

The younger short-eared owl gave a slight roll of eyes as she was smiling as well. Words could not begin to describe how relieved she was, as she could already picture Soren coming in and immediately swooping her down low and gave her a loving kiss, like a knight in shining feathers (**Note: That was actually a name of a Rio fic**).

Everyone was gathering around the entrance, as all of the tree's denizens were coming to welcome back their conquering heroes, heck, even the king and queen themselves were present.

Boron eagerly looked up in the sky as he asked nervously, "Where are they? How long does it take to land?"

"Calm down, dear," Barran soothed, "I'm sure they will be landing in just a moment…"

The queen was right, as suddenly, the beats of wings became audible as suddenly landing in front of them was none other than Ezylryb, although his landing wasn't the best, given how his metal talon was warped to no end. Nonetheless, Ezylryb took a few steps forward to make way, as suddenly, Digger and Gylfie landed as well, although like Ezylryb, Gylfie was less than graceful due to the injury in her hip, but fortunately, Digger quickly helped her to her feet and helped her move her aside.

Otulissa's heart was pulsing in anticipation as she watched the three stepped towards the crowd. But she couldn't help but noticed the expression on Ezylryb's face, as it seemed…grim, even more than usual, she might add. In fact, Digger and Gylfie's faces were the same as well…it was growing more apparent that something bad had happened, and for that brief moment, the feeling of fear returned, as the short-eared owl was about to fear the worst. She would have, too, had not suddenly landing was Twilight…and to the Great Gray's right, landing in a quick fashion, was none other than Soren, immediately causing the Short-Eared Owl to nearly leap for joy as she was moments away from dashing to him and shower him with loving affection…but her eyes caught a glimpse of red, as part of her love's body was stained scarlet and his face was that of desperation. She had to stifle a scream to prevent panic, as she feared that he was badly wounded…but then common sense broke in, how would a severely wounded owl fly? That question asked, it brought up another question, if that 'blood' wasn't Soren's, then whose was it?

She needn't wait long for an answer, as the barn owl quickly hasted to Twilight's side and with a swish of his battle claw (**he had abandoned his bronze sword**), a piece of bandage dropped from around Twilight, who in turn let out a deep breath, for it was wrapped tightly around him, and before Otulissa was about to approach him once more, Soren grabbed something from Twilight's back…and to everyone's shock, that something was an unconscious owl. Before anyone could question what was going on, the barn owl then screeched;

"SOMEBODY HELP US!" Soren screamed with his dying brother in his wings.

Everyone gasped in fear from Soren's sudden outburst; even the king and queen were shocked. Otulissa, on the other hand, was confused, especially as to who that owl Soren had in his wings was…unfortunately, her confusion was about to get even worse when suddenly, landing aside Twilight, was none other than the queen of the Pure Ones…Nyra. This prompted even more gasps, as Otulissa herself was about to take battle stance…but oddly enough, the expression on Nyra's face was not that of malicious intent or anything bad for that matter…it was a face of desperation, much like Soren. Then landing behind them, were two barn owls that Otulissa immediately recognized as Soren's parents, and in their talons were none other than Eglantine and Mrs. P, causing even more gasps…but their attention were still diverted to Soren and the owl in his wings and the Pure Ones queen.

Then Soren let out another shout, "SOMEBODY, PLEASE, HE NEEDS HELP!"

Despite the owl's screech, everyone stood still, whether it was out of fear of Nyra, who was stupefied that they aren't doing anything, or it was of sheer confusion. Otulissa, however, was the first to move, as she approached Soren quickly.

"Soren, calm down! What is going on?! What happened to Metalbeak? Why is she here?!" She gestured to Nyra, who was merely offended by her bluntness, "Who is this owl?!"

It took but a few seconds for Soren to process that it was Otulissa, his girlfriend, who was addressing her, as he looked at his love in the eyes and back down at his brother. In his desperation, he had but forgotten that no one knew his brother, only the dark shell that was known as Metalbeak. Hoping that what he said next would actually get people to help him, he said, "He…he is my brother…Kludd…"

Otulissa drew back, her eyebrows widened. And she had hoped that Soren's answer would clear her confusion…now it just made it even worse.

"Brother? Soren, your brother is dead. You said so yourself!" Otulissa tried to correct.

"Exactly!"

Everyone nearly jolted up when they heard that loud exclaim, as their eyes were darting around to find who had said that…

"Damn it, let me through!"

Suddenly, bursting out from between a couple Guardians…well bursting wouldn't be the right word, let's just say…hopping out from between a couple of Guardians, all bandaged up to the point where he could barely move a limb, came LaRoche.

"LaRoche?!" The band, Ezylryb, and Nyra all exclaimed, momentarily forgetting their situation at hand.

"What are you doing, LaRoche?" Boron demanded, "You should be resting!"

"What, and miss my golden opportunity?!" The grizzled elf owl churred (**That's an owl laugh btw**) "With all due respect, my liege, I will not let broken bones, a couple contusions, and a twisted ankle ruin it!"

"What are you talking about?!" Otulissa screeched.

"I am talking about the true identity of _Metalbeak_, of course!" LaRoche answered, prompting shocked expression from Soren and the others, but a rolling of eyes from everyone else.

"For glaux's sake, this again?!" Barran spat, "Don't you see that an owl needs help here?!"

"Bear with me, your majesty." LaRoche nonchalantly replied, "PIP! BRING IN EXHIBIT A!"

On command, a pipping sound is heard as through the crowd came Pip. But what really got the owls wondering was the feather that Pip had in his beak. Soon, the Little Owl was at the injured Elf Owl's side…

"Thank you, Pip." LaRoche nodded, as he turned to face the crowd, "As you see in Pip's beak, you see a dark brown feather. Now look at this feather…" He gestured to Pip, who just holds the feather higher, "And look at the stiff our friend Soren is carrying." This prompted Soren's beak to drop from the Elf Owl's unsympathetic words, as well as his parents, Nyra, and the others.

"That 'stiff' you're talking about is MY SON!" Noctus roared at the Elf Owl.

"The son that your other son claimed to be dead!" LaRoche sneered back, as he then turned to the crowd, "Don't you see a similarity between this feather and this boy right here?"

The crowd started talking indistinctively as the question got them thinking, when LaRoche repeated it to Otulissa, "You, Short-Ear, does this feather matches the owl?"

Otulissa merely scowled at LaRoche at his name for her, "Where are you going-?"

"Just answer the damn question!" The Elf Owl demanded.

"Yes, okay!" The short-eared owl answered, "But what is-?"

However, LaRoche continued, "But this feather is not from that owl…oh no, this feather is from Metalbeak when he crashed in on our feast four nights back!"

"So the boy and Metalbeak has the same feathers, so what?!" Dewlap, one of the other elders asked.

"Oh that where it gets interesting! Pip and I were in the library, comparing this feather to that within our many owl glossaries, and what we found was quite interesting!" LaRoche explained, "Brown feathers found on Barn Owls usually have a distinctive but unique pattern on each owl. I was going to tell you, Boron, had I not been ambushed by three bloody Pure Ones!"

"That is not true!" Mrs. P hissed, "They were taking us and you happened to be in their way! You got smashed to a bloody pulp by the 'Nix' boy!"

"Details, details!" LaRoche growled, "The point I am trying to make is…" He paused, as if to create a dramatic effect, "This feather matches that of that boy…" Another pause ensued, "And that boy is none other than Soren's dead brother Kludd…who is none other than…" He paused once more, "**METALBEAK!**"

For once, as the owls thought back to that night, and as they saw the young owl limp in Soren's wings, LaRoche's words proven to be true. The one who had taken control of the Pure Ones…who had nearly killed some of their own…was lying before them, and the fact that one of their own was brother to such an evil owl prompted everyone's beaks to drop, even Otulissa and Strix Struma was horrified. Soren and the others, on the other hand, were shocked…with the exception of Ezylryb, who was appalled that LaRoche would pick the worst time to demonize _his_ apprentice and turn everyone against him…that was despicable! LaRoche, on the other wing, just smirked at his own victory, for months he had been ridiculed and now, someone else was going to feel his pain.

Otulissa turned to Soren, as she asked, stammering a little, "Soren…is…is this true?"

Soren didn't answer, as the eyes of everyone, Otulissa included, were staring in shock, mortification, and fear at what was just revealed before their eyes, and how could he blame them? It was already bad enough that his brother was Metalbeak, leader of their sworn enemies, but the fact that he had lied to them about it and kept it all a secret only made it worse. He didn't know what to say, or even what he could say…like he had said to himself four nights back…it was a bad situation, indeed…

But to his surprise, Nyra stepped up instead, her eyes nearly flickering red from anger, as she growled, "What does it matter if Kludd is Metalbeak?! What difference does it make?! He needs medical help now!"

LaRoche however smirked with superiority, "Oh, what makes you think we are going to help him?! He's a Pure One! Pure Ones should die for their sins!"

"Die?!" Marella gasped, "BUT HE IS OUR SON! YOU WOULD LEAVE HIM TO DIE?!" She screamed.

"Look, lady, it's your fault for not raising him right." LaRoche merely shrugged off, "No one in this tree would help the leader of a group who is responsible for the many losses of family and friends!"

"Don't you dare talk to my mate that way, you low-life scroundrel!" Noctus snarled, "Our son is the reason we are alive!"

"He is a war criminal!" The Elf Owl spat.

"He's a hero!" Ezylryb growled, "We owe our lives to him!"

"What do you know of heroism, Lyze? All you did was cut off someone's beak…"

"SHUT UP!" Soren screamed, immediately stopping LaRoche, as the Tyto Alba glared at the Elf Owl, muttering with tears threatening his eyes, "You…can't…do this…Kludd is my brother…you can't let him die!"

LaRoche just rolled his eyes, "I am not doing anything…obviously…" He looked at his injured body, "You are the one who had done this to yourself…you could have come clean…but you didn't…your brother made the call of being one of them…it is his own fault for getting himself hurt…the thing you must learn, kid, is you can't just act like your brother is good at heart when in reality, he is an evil little sprink…Pure Ones are not like us…they don't have hearts…they don't have feelings…they don't know right from wrong…I know it, they know it," He gestures to the crowd, "And somewhere deep inside…you know it…I'm sorry, but your brother is good as dead…"

Soren's glare remained indifferent as if the Elf Owl's words had no effect on him…but in reality, it did…it _really_ did. He gently placed his brother on the ground and cautiously stepped around him, and as he did, he slipped off his battle claws…

Confused by his actions, LaRoche asked, "Why'd you take your battle claws off?"

"So I don't rip your body apart when I claw it!" Soren screeched as he then charged at LaRoche (**Fantastic Mr. Fox reference!**), getting almost close enough had not Digger, Gylfie and Twilight stopped him…however, the closeness of the Barn Owl and his threat was enough to get the Elf Owl riled up, in fact, everyone else nearly gasped by the Barn Owl's aggressiveness.

"Did you hear that?! He issued a death threat! You see, he's evil like him! He's-" LaRoche screeched, nearly falling back against the crowd had not Pip caught him.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" A feminine voice screeched.

Everyone stopped once more, when the crowd parted to reveal a rather peeved Screech Owl, who Soren, Ezylryb, and LaRoche immediately recognized as none other than Alice.

"Alice! I am glad that you could make it!" LaRoche sneered, "Well, hopefully you had heard everything you needed to hear…"

"Oh, I had heard enough…" Alice replied grumpily, as she approached the returning heroes, but then she took notice of Kludd's limp body, so she redirected her walking path to the barn owl and merely knelt as if to examine him. Soren and LaRoche looked at her confused, when the Elf Owl suddenly asked;

"Well…don't you have something to say?" The gruff Elf Owl asked, remembering how Alice scoffed at his capability of proving that Metalbeak was Kludd two nights back.

The Screech Owl remained silent for a few seconds when suddenly, she turned to Pip and requested, "I need you to go to the infirmary and some transporters here! Tell Holly and the others that there's a potential mortally wounded in need of immediate treatment!" The Little Owl, as if he suddenly changed loyalty or something, merely gave a salute as he flew off into the tree to get some help.

Soren and the others merely gasped, as LaRoche, baffled by what she just said (and the fact that his accomplice would just do what someone else said just like that), screeched, "What in glaux's name are you doing?!"

"My job. This boy is going to bleed out internally if nothing is done in the next few minutes. Now someone get this boy to the infirmary!" She repeated.

No one still moved, as they looked at her as if she was insane. Some of them didn't want the boy to die, but they can't deny the fact that the boy was king of the Pure Ones (or was, as they had heard) and with some of the less-forgiving Guardians in the crowd, LaRoche included, a fight would certainly ensue…

"Alice…did you not hear me right?" LaRoche asked incredulously, "This boy is…"

"Metalbeak, I heard you the first time!" Alice screeched, "But I don't see Metalbeak…" She turned to face Soren, who were still being braced by his friends, "I see a fellow Guardian's brother is need of help…help I refuse to deny!"

Soren and Nyra merely smiled in exasperation at those words, as well as Noctus, Marella, and Ezylryb…while LaRoche's face turned to that of anger, "Listen here, Alice! This boy is the enemy! He doesn't deserve our he-"

The Elf Owl was immediately interrupted mid-speech when Alice suddenly turned around and stomped on his only working talon, as she then looked at the now-stammering owl with a seething glare, "You look here, LaRoche…I did not earn the title of being the best healer in all of owldoms by turning away owls! I do not know what it is that you have against compassion, but as the Guardians' oath said, we mend the broken! This lad here is in need of our help and I will not let an owl die because of some MEANINGLESS..." She pressured the Elf Owl's talon harder, prompting a high-pitched yelp, "HATE-FILLED…" She pushed harder, "WAR BROUGHT UPON BY A COUPLE OF FEATHER-BRAINED SAVAGES!" She finished with a vicious caw, frightening everyone, even the strong-hearted were suddenly shaken by her screech. LaRoche, whose talon was practically hurting like hagsmire now, was gaping, both out of pain and fear of the Screech Owl that was still crushing his talon. Alice, seeing that her screech got through to everyone, merely calmed down but maintained her strict tone, "Now…I am going to let go of your talon…when I do, I expect you to return to your hollow and get some rest and to hear no more words out of you against these brave owls for a _long_ time…do I make myself clear?"

LaRoche, still gasping from the pain, merely nodded, "Yes…clear…oh so perfectly clear…"

"Good." Alice smirked, letting go of the Elf Owl's talon. Immediately, forced to hop on his now aching foot, LaRoche merely hopped back to his hollow somewhere in the tree…but not before tripping and letting out another groan. Satisfied, the elderly owl turned to the crowd, who were all shocked by what they just saw. Not once had they expected the nurse to have a fierce side. She continued, "If any of you owls have a problem with me helping this poor owl here, I don't want to hear it! Now I wish that you all return to your daily routines and that you do not disturb these owls here, can you do that?!"

The crowd merely nodded in understanding as they disperse, not bothering to look at the owls who had returned from their mission. Otulissa herself would have stay, had not Strix suddenly shooed her off, her reason being that Soren and the others have some alone time for now. All that remained now were Soren, Nyra, The Band, Soren's family, Ezylryb, Alice, and the king and queen, who had remained in their spots…

"Well…that was quite a performance you put on there, Ms. Alice." Barran merely quipped, as if she was scolding an impudent child.

"My apologies, milady. But I felt that little git needed to put in his place." Alice explained.

"As much as I agree with you, that doesn't change the fact that _someone_ has a bit of explaining to do." Boron declared, as he gave a glare to Soren.

The Tyto Alba cringed under his glare as he agreed, "I know, your majesty, but…"

"I'm afraid Soren will not be able to do so." Ezylryb interrupted as he placed a wing on Soren's shoulder, "His brother needs him more than you do…but if you insist, I shall do the explaining."

"But sir, I…" The Tyto Alba tried to refuse, when the sounds of wings were heard as Pip returned with two owls and a gurney in tow.

"Oh good, they're here." Alice sighed, as she then turned to the group, "I am truly sorry, your majesties, but I feel that right now the inflicted's family needs to be there for him. So I would take Ezylryb up on that offer..." Before the king and queen could object, the Screech Owl turned to the two owls that brought the gurney and said, "Please load Kludd onto the gurney and take him to the infirmary posthaste!"

The two owls, with a salute, did as such, as they, with the utmost caution, loaded the unconscious Barn Owl onto the gurney, and without wasting a moment, the two sped off towards the infirmary. Alice then looked back at the group, as she then ordered, "Step this way, please..."

As soon as Alice made the gesture, Noctus and Marella immediately sped past the elderly owl, hoping to catch up with the ones transporting their eldest son, and following them, with the petite sleeping form of Eglantine in her coils, Mrs. P followed them as well. Soren gave a look of uncertainty as he looked towards where his family had went and then back to Ezylryb and the king and queen, and was unsure of what do...

"Go, Soren. Your brother needs you more." Ezylryb ordered, "I will take care of things here..."

Soren wanted to rebut him, but seeing the adamant expression in his eyes, all he could do was let out a defeated sigh and gave a nod as he then flew off after his family. Then his friends, feeling that they needed to be there for their friend for morale support, as they flew off after him, leaving only the two Screech Owls, the two snowy owls, and Nyra.

"Well, aren't you going to join them?" Alice asked with an raised brow.

Nyra looked at the Screech Owl oddly, as she then replied, "I don't know if I would be..."

"I said 'the inflicted's family'." Alice interrupted, "I may not know much about this boy, but given that you came with Soren and the others, you certainly must be family...right?"

The white barn owl looked at the nurse with a look of shock. Of course she never considered herself a part of Kludd's family, given how all but Kludd had a very low opinion of the Pure Ones. But now given how things were as of now, she didn't know. Did Alice forget that she was a Pure One...or was it that she didn't care about her upbringing? This left Nyra practically speechless, as she tried to come up with an answer to the Guardian's question...

However, Alice gave her no chance as she quickly slipped behind Nyra and started shoving her, much to her shock, "Come on!" as the two quickly went to the infirmary, leaving the two leaders of the tree mute, as they were unable to get any objections in edgewise, as well as Ezylryb, who merely smirk, impressed by his crush's straight-forwardness.

"...Tell me again, why is it that we had chosen Alice to be our head nurse?" Barran asked her mate, a bit befuddled by the nurse's adamancy.

Boron sighed, "Because, dear, they do not call her the best healer for nothing...unfortunately, even the greatest things can pose as a double-edge sword..."

"Indeed." Ezylryb said, trying to hide his smirk, "Anyway, should we take this discussion to the Parliament Chamber?"

The king nodded, "Of course. This way please..." As the king and queen, along with the Lyze of Keil went off to the chamber, hoping to get some answers for the events that occured tonight. But before we are to find out whether our hero Kludd has a chance of survival, there is yet one more event that must be visited...

* * *

-**Darkness's Remnant**-

_"This is the sign of the times...another mountain to climb...the sun burns as hot as the flame in the devil's eyes..."_

As the events transpired at the homelands of the Guardians, there lied movements back at the cliff where Maurice had met his untimely demise, as two very familiar Long Eared Owls made their way to the spot where our heroes had once stood a little while ago, rubbing their beaks from the gnarly faceplant they received when they were blown into a tree while trying to escape the crumbling pillar with their unconscious general in tow. Seeing how the general was still conked out when they had come to, they had decided to look around to see if any of the other owls they served with (or the prisoners they were chasing) was still around.

However, as the two approached the cliffs, Jatt merely groaned, rubbing his beaks, "Ugh...this is just great...we haven't found any of our comrades...Kludd and the others probably got away...and worse of all, I think my beak is chipped...is it chipped, Jutt?" He asked, as he turned to his cousin.

Jutt merely gave his relative an exasperated look, and said, "No…even if it was, it was still ugly to begin with..."

"HEY!" Jatt snarled, "At least I know a difference between rhetorical and literal words!"

"Oh come off it! I am not the one with the awful 'bad guy look!'" Jutt spat back.

"Like yours is any better!" Jatt growled, turning away from him, "You really are a-Skarmoris?"

"Skarmoris? Was that supposed to be insulting?"

"NO! I mean Skarmoris!" The Long-Eared cousin repeated, as he gestured to the figure that laid towards the edge of the cliff.

Immediately curious, not to mentioned frightened, the two owls cautiously approached the body...only to be met with a major shock as they caught a full glimpse of who it was they saw now. Now to be clear, Skarmoris had seldom removed his mask since he first donned it, and to tell the truth, the first time he took it off was when he revealed his identity to Nyra and the others...but as Jatt and Jutt saw his still body, despite how long it had been (four years to be precise), they both easily recognized the dead owl.

"Oh my glaux...is that who I think it is?" Jatt asked.

"I don't know…but it looks a lot like…General Maurice…" Jutt dumbly answered.

"The owl that brought cannibalism and anarchy in our army is none than Maurice…why did he hide his identity from us and changed his name?"

"Maybe because he didn't like the name, I mean, come on, what kind of name is Maurice?" (**No offense to all the Maurices out there!**)

"Yeah, like the name Skarmoris was any better! But…I always did wonder what had happened to the kid."

"So did I…but now…" Jutt grimaced as he looked at Maurice's battered body, "We got our answers…such a pity."

Suddenly, an audible grumbling echoed through, causing the two cousins to look back…and cringed as the stumbling, angry frame of Nix, the scar on his left eye now coagulated approached them.

"Real smooth, you morons! Leave me by myself on the ground in the woods! Some saviors you turned out to be!" The grass owl snarled.

Jutt sighed, "Sorry, sir, but you were conked out still…so we thought we could see if we couldn't find the prisoners and the others…"

"Really, you thought that those damn Guardians would stick around here? Use your brains, you damn mooncalves! (**Note: This is owl for idiot or coward**) Those owls are long gone now! Seriously, how is it that I get stuck with you two?!" Nix ranted.

"Well, you're no prize yourself…" Jatt bitterly remarked under his breath.

"What was that?!" Nix growled, his slightly heightened hearing catching that insult towards him and honestly thought of doing a repeat of what he did to LaRoche to him…when he suddenly saw the body behind them, "Who's that behind you two?"

The cousins turned around to face the body once more in response to the grass owl's question, as Jutt answered in one word, opting not to tell him of who he was before, "Skarmoris."

Nix's eyes widened when he heard that name as he walked past the two, approaching the corpse. Indeed, despite him not wearing his trademark helmet, it was easy to tell that it was none other than the Sulawesi Masked Owl that made him general (honestly, what other owl had a black wing in contrast to the rest of the body?). But what became such a great surprise to him was how badly beaten the body was, as slash marks covered his entire body that could leak enough blood fit for exsanguination, and a major stab wound where his heart was still leaking blood a little. Did…did Kludd do this to him? That weak-arse idiot managed to not only defeat him…but destroy him as well? Is it possible that he had Kludd all pinned wrong about not having the gizzard to kill someone? The grass owl shuddered at that thought, and at the fact that the Pure Ones were once again without a leader…

"What do we do now, Nix?" Jatt asked, "With Skarmoris dead, and Kludd and Nyra gone, the Pure Ones has no leader!"

Nix shook off his shock as he donned a glare, "Oh come on! We don't need them! The Pure Ones can still live on!"

"How could you say that?!" Jutt exclaimed, "No leader equal chaos! How can an army survive without someone as great as Skarmoris?!"

"SHUT UP!" Nix screeched, "You want to know what I thought of Skarmoris?!" To answer that rhetorical question, Nix immediately turned around, and with one well-placed kick, Maurice's body rolled off the side of the cliff, falling down to the sea below, immediately swallowing the lifeless body. This act shocked Jatt and Jutt, as they looked down where the body had went, while Nix just looked with unsympathetic pity, saying, "So long, Skarmoris, you fool." (**The Capture reference!**) With that, he just walked towards the head of the cliff.

The two long-eared owls looked back at the grass owl, appalled by his lack of respect he had for the dead and their once-general and king, as Jutt merely snarled, "What the hagsmire is wrong with you?!"

"I'm just clearing the slate." Nix just answered, continuing his walk, "The Pure Ones will rise again and rule this damn world."

"Oh yeah? You and what army?" Jatt asked, "In case you hadn't noticed, we are the only three left! You can't take an army on with just three owls!"

"Now hold on a moment!" Jutt pointed out, "What about the group Skarmoris sent to Talon's Breach? I think Uglamore and the others are there!"

"Yeah, like they are going to just continue serving an army with no leader! The moment they figure out Skarmoris is no more, they will all split! Let's face it, the Pure Ones are done!" Jatt snarled with a bit of hopelessness.

"Oh come on, cousin!"

"Even if they do decide to stay, that is only fifty owls! What kind of army is fifty owls?! A horrible one, that's what!"

Nix let out a heavy sigh, as he arrived at the peak of the cliff, for once, that Long-Eared buffoon proved a point. As the term went, the ship was now without a captain, and surely that ship will sink if another doesn't rise up to commandeer it. But who would be the one to fulfill such a heavy task, to lead a now-broken and meager army and bring them back to their days of greatness?

Then he felt something with his talon. He looked down and his eyes widened in shock…it was the helm and crown of none other than Skarmoris…even though the helm was now dented and had a big hole in the right part of the visor, the grass owl felt an odd feeling within himself as he stared at the head armor…the feeling quite unfamiliar yet so familiar…that feeling was none other than power, and as Nix picked it up and observed it closely, the sensation only grew stronger…then it had hit him. Ever since he was young, he had been abused, whether it was from bigger owls or from his own father, never given reprieve from the endless cycle of torment, continuing over and over on to his adolescent years as a Pure One, as all he ever felt was the sense of powerlessness…but ever since the night Skarmoris took over the Pure Ones, that feeling began to disappear, and no longer had he felt he had to take racdrops from anyone…and now, as he looked into the empty eyes of the helm, he knew that he would never go back to being trampled on again…

In that moment, an evil and possibly insane grin began to grow across the grass owl's face, paying no heed to the argument that was ensuing between Jatt and Jutt over what would become of the Pure Ones…as he told those Guardians back at the tower, when Skarmoris lost the right to hold the crown, he will take his turn and fan the flame his blazes burned. He knew that the path he is about to begin will be fraught with hardships, but hey, kingdoms are never built in a night. The moon started to set, signifying the end of one's short reign…but when the moon rises again…it will mark the new beginning of another's reign, rising from the ashes, like a phoenix (**wink synchronized harmony wink**), and the continuation of one's path for vengeance. For in the end, as it was in the beginning of the age of the owls, Tyto will become the superior species and the Tytonic Union of Pure Ones will rule all the kingdoms…that was a promise.

But before we shall delve deeper into such dark designs, there are other matters that must be attend to…for one's life hangs in the balance, lying in the hands of Glaux himself…

* * *

**A/N: First off, I want to apologize if this chapter sucked in any way. I know that I might get crap about whether Kludd would have survived about an hour's flight with such a wound, but I believe it is possible. As you can see, I did a slight intro to Uglamore, Wortmore, and Stryker, who were all notable soldiers within the Pure Ones' army, I should note that these three will not have that much of a role till much later, but will make appearances here and there. Our heroes also returned to Ga'Hoole, to be met with cold reception, courtesy of our love-to-hate guy LaRoche, only to be defended by Alice. Finally, we meet back up with Nix and the cousins, where there was a major foreshadowing for future events…Anyway, sorry again for keeping you hanging on whether Kludd will live or not, but rest assured, it will be revealed next chapter! Btw, here's the songs featured in the chapter:**

**Holding On – Jamie Grace**

**Burn It Down – Linkin Park**

**Somebody Help Me – Full Blown Roses**

**Sign of Times – Three Days Grace**

**Stay tuned, because the next chapter** **is the SECOND-TO-LAST CHAPTER! So, this is Shen's General signing off for now, READ AND REVIEW!**

"_Why is it that war exist? Was it because of a mere disagreement between two men or is it that we hold hate towards others because we are different? Those are questions that never be answered._"

**_Artworks stuff is appreciated_**


	23. Roads Untraveled and Truths Untold

**A/N: ...Hey guys...long time no see. I do not know what is it that I can say, but I believe I shall say this...I AM VERY VERY SORRY! SO SORRY THAT I UNDERSTAND IF ALL OF YOU HATE MY GUTS FOR LEAVING ALL OF YOU MORE THAN A MONTH WITHOUT AN UPDATE TO THIS STORY! There is a lot of reasons why I hadn't been able to update this: laziness, lack of inspiration, school, home, and the cruel bitch that we all know as writers' block. One major setback I had was me restarting this chapter because I was very dissatisfied with it. Originally, this was going to be the second to last chapter (like I said last chapter) but...yeah, it's kinda complicated. Instead of making you read all this pathetic apologizing, let's proceed with this chapter!**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole...if I did, this story would probably be its sequel.**

**I do not own Roads Untraveled or Linkin Park**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl. I also claim ownership of the Deathbringer, the hagsfiend.**

**Note: If you would like to discuss this story or the characters within the Pure Redemption Saga series, come to the Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole forums and click on Pure Redemption Saga Discussion, and pick either the Between Brothers Story Discussion or the Character Discussion section, and leave your thoughts, predictions, and whatnots (And when the next story comes, that story discussion will be open).**

**I want to give thanks to Synchronized Harmony for helping me with scenes in this chapter, you rock!**

**NOTE: We had escalated over 10,000 views! Thank you!**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Three: Roads Untraveled, Truths Untold, and Lives Intertwined

_"Weep not for roads untraveled...weep not for paths left alone...cause beyond every bend is a long blinding end, it's the worst kind of pain I known"_

- a verse from Roads Untraveled by Linkin Park

To Soren, time seemed to have slowed down that night, for it seemed like tonight was the most eventful night of his entire living existence. One moment, he and his brother along with everyone were flying to the Pillar of Supremacy, another moment, they were faced with Skarmoris within his throne room, then he found himself and Kludd battling him (and Deathbringer) amongst the lightning-filled skies...and then...Kludd was dying in his arms...to say the least, this night was a long one...

However, despite how much had happened, time still seem to had come to a standstill. Only a hour had passed since they had arrived at the tree of Ga'Hoole and Kludd's persona as the infamous Metalbeak had been revealed by LaRoche, effectively turning nearly everyone in the tree against his brother and himself, and the situation would had ended badly had not Alice intervene and stood up for them.

Now here Soren stood, waiting in the infirmary, his eyes lying upon a hollow, where Kludd was taken into by the two owls, soon followed by Alice, and a select few of the medical ward, where they had been for the past hour since they first arrived here. The barn owl's heart kept beating at an irregular pace as he waited, anxiety striking his heart with a great and unrelenting ferocity. It was without question that the suspense was tormenting him, fear plaguing his mind and soul, the emotional pain taking its toll on the poor Barn Owl's body, which was pushed to exhaustion so many times tonight that all Soren would love to do is rest…but even that was out of his wings. The only light he could see in this shroud of despair was the fact that he was not alone…

Indeed, the young Tyto Alba was not the only one to feel gloom, as his friends and family shared the heavy weight of helplessness and despair. The young Tyto cast a gaze upon the others, as he saw Digger and Gylfie next to each other, the Burrowing Owl's left wing wrapped around Gylfie, their eyes both fraught with worry…Soren couldn't help but be surprised to see the two so close to each other, did something happen back in the pillar that he had missed? Then his gaze shifted to Twilight, who was merely strumming a string or two on his lute, unable to actually think of a tune to play, which was unnatural for him, but Soren could understand that. He shifted his glance over to his parents, his heart aching as he saw the pain etched in both of their faces, even more so than four nights before, and between them, Mrs. P, donning the same expression, just kept her coils wrapped firmly around Eglantine, who was asleep all this time, all of them keeping close to each other for comfort that they so desperately sought.

However, there was only one owl he knew that was suffering the most, possibly even more than his parents and himself, was Nyra, who just sat against the wall opposite to the entrance of the infirmary. In the first time in his life ever since meeting the Pure Ones queen, he had never seen her so…defeated. Her eyes, slightly red from the tears she shed, were now empty, void of anything worth noting, as if she was placed in another plane of existence in which she was alone…

All Soren could do at the sight of his downtrodden friends was let out a heavy sigh. All this sadness, all this grief, all of it was caused by him! If he had only told his parents the truth (although to be fair, it wasn't a lie at first, he really though Kludd was dead) about Kludd, then they wouldn't had been set up for so much pain…then again, this whole mess wouldn't have even begun had he not followed Kludd two years ago (**see ch 13**), and if he wasn't so blind to see the anger and jealously that emanated from his brother all those years…maybe his brother wouldn't be fighting for his life right now. All his attempts to protect them from pain, and it just blew up in his face…

The silence within the room was then interrupted as the infirmary's head nurse (aside from Alice) Holly, a middle-aged Elf Owl, walked in with a few other nurses, as some of them were carrying medical supplies.

"Holly?" Soren asked, a bit confused, "What are you doing?"

"Simple, lad. Alice told us to get you guys patched up." Holly answered.

"Patched up? But we don't need-"

"Don't give me that, Soren, lad." The Elf Owl interrupted firmly, "Alice told me that she had never seen a group of owls that looked so beaten up."

"Well let see you try out running a group of owl-eating owls!" Twilight rebutted indignantly, "Had not a pillar fallen on them, we would have been nothing more than mice meat!"

This prompted a bunch of odd looks from the nurses, as Holly asked, "Uh, Twilight, did you hit your head or something?"

"It's a long story." Noctus explained, "But I agreed with Soren, we don't need any-" A audible crick sound was made, as Noctus gripped his back in pain, "Ow! Ow! My back!"

The others (with the exception of Nyra) merely rolled their eyes, as the nurse Elf Owl just sighed with a hint of sarcasm, "Thank you, sir, for proving my and Alice's point. If there is no further objections, me and the ladies would like to begin now."

Soren just sighed, as the nurses prepare to treat them, as his mind then went to Ezylryb, who they left with the king and queen so he could debrief them on what had happen. He could only wonder how he is faring right now…

* * *

Ezylryb stood in the midst of the Parliament Chamber, staring at his fellow elders and the rulers, as they were arguing over what had just transpired an hour ago, and it was growing even more heated...and the old owl haven't even said anything yet.

"I can't believe it! Metalbeak was related to one of our own!" Dewlap cried, "Who would have thought that one of our promising warriors is related to that ruffian?!"

"I am just as surprised as you are, Dewlap, but I think you are over-reacting a little," Strix Struma tried to calm.

"She is reacting the right amount!" Madame Plonk defended, "I mean, it make so much sense why the lad was shifty-eyed whenever his brother was mentioned. I would be too knowing that I was related to a criminal!"

"Oi, so what if the boy is brother to a Pure One? What difference does it makes?" Bubo rebutted (**since his original actor had died, I gave him the voice of Craig Ferguson, who voiced Gobber in How To Train Your Dragon...and it works because they're both blacksmiths**)

"It makes a lot of difference!"

Everyone suddenly jolted when they heard the new voice and turned to the perch where LaRoche usually stood, just to find the said owl there.

"LaRoche? What are you doing here?" Boron asked, "Didn't Alice told you to return to your hollow?"

"She did, but as I once said, 'Duty comes before health.'" LaRoche replied in a smug voice.

Silence ensued for a brief second, as Bubo said, "You never said that!"

"Oh, give it a blow!" LaRoche snapped, "Besides, I am dying to hear what poor excuse the old owl have to say regarding our traitor and the monster!"

"For glaux's sake, LaRoche! So Soren lied about his brother's identity, he was just defending him! That's does not constitute as being a traitor!" Strix defended.

"I don't care if he just trimmed his claws! There are regulations for helping the enemy! Most of them punishable by death!" The Elf Owl growled.

"Wait, when did death become a part of this conversation?" Bubo asked incredulously.

"That doesn't matter. They have to go!" LaRoche ignored.

"Excuse me…" Ezylryb tried to get a word in, but the argument continued.

"Oh, have a heart, LaRoche!" Strix snarled.

"I agree with the small guy, those Pure Ones can't be trusted!" Dewlap nodded.

"Excuse me." The old Screech Owl said again, in a higher tone.

"Now, now, we shouldn't jump to conclusions." Boron tried to reason, "We should at least-"

"At least what? What could possibly be said that will justify all their actions?!" LaRoche interrupted.

"EXCUSE ME!" The Lyze of Kiel screeched aloud in frustration, immediately drawing everyone's attention, "Now that I finally have all of your attention, I would like to explain what it is that you saw tonight…"

"I'll tell you what I saw…I saw a Guardian bring home a Pure One." LaRoche muttered quietly.

"What exactly happened, Lyze?" Boron asked, "One moment you were helping Metalbeak take back his kingdom and now he is here…without Metalbeak's helm. And what of Skarmoris?"

The old owl let out a long sigh, "Well, my king…it is a long story."

"Really? I happen to have a taste for those kinds of stories…" The male snowy owl mused.

"Well then, you are going to get one hagsmire of a kick from this one-"

"JUST GET ON WITH IT!" LaRoche snarled, earning glares from everyone else.

Ezylryb gave the Elf Owl a profound glare before turning back to the king and queen, "Very well, as my protégé Soren said, it all started one night…"

* * *

The movements of time continued it's slow transgression, as Soren awaited for someone…anyone, to come out of the hollow and tell him of anything regarding his brother…but no one had yet step out of the hollow since they first arrived here. Needless to say the tension was killing him.

All that had remained in the infirmary now was him, his family, who were now asleep (a luxury that Soren wished that he could have), and Nyra, who continued her long bout of silence. Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight, knowing that there was nothing they could do at the moment, decided to give Soren some space for a moment, as they went off into the tree to ponder their own thoughts that they had running through their minds…but we shall get to them later, for the owl we are to focus on now was none other than our Barn Owl friend.

He was tired yet he couldn't sleep. He was hungry yet he feels like he can't stomach anything. He was in pain, pain that could not be healed by any medicine. Heck, his bones still ached all over from the fight with Skarmoris, and then with the Deathbringer... but it didn't compare with the pain he felt inside his own heart. Kludd had been found to be... well, Kludd. His brother.

Understandably, finding out that the feared Metalbeak was in fact one of your protectors' brother had certainly ruffled some feathers, but what was worse...was the fact that that said protector, a self-proclaimed follower of the paragons of truth and honor, had LIED to keep that fact hidden from the owls he shared his life with. So far, no one had actively chastised him for this, but that was almost worse, for he could sense the masked hostility and disapproval in their faces. He almost wished one of them would just explode at him and get it over with. Perhaps, by engaging in an argument with somebody else about it, he could clear the matter up for himself. Because Soren honestly could not remember what it had been that seemed so horrible, which stopped him from just coming out with the truth, maybe it was to spare his parents the pain, maybe he wanted everyone to believe that his brother wasn't evil…or maybe he himself wanted to believe that he could save his brother. Nonetheless, surely it could not have been worse that this... brooding…

And worst of all... there was Otulissa, that beautiful short-eared owl that he had intended on proposing on the return of their journey. Well, that plan was ruined now. He was sure that she now hated him for lying to her, like everything else. A soft noise beside him made him break out of his gloomy thoughts, as he turns to face the origin of the sounds.

There, the soft moonlight glistening off her silky feathers was the fantasized owl of his dreams, which admittedly had turned rather sour of late. So, had she finally come to yell at him? Despite thinking that it would be better that way only seconds before, Soren quailed at the thought of her being angry with him. Anyone, even Dewlap or LaRoche, the grouchiest of all the owls, give him anyone but her!

But Otulissa only sat there, sending him the occasional glance, as if SHE was waiting for HIM to say something. The tension was tangible, at least to Soren. He tried saying something, but no sounds came out.

"You look down-and-out," she said at last, in her sweet, sweet voice. (Had it always sounded so beautiful? Or was that a new thing?)

Soren scoffed, "Trust me, down and out is putting it lightly," he replied quietly, shifting his gaze away from her uneasily.

Again, there was silence. Otulissa was, almost against herself, becoming a little frustrated. She and Soren hadn't spoken much since he had returned. Not at all how she had imagined it. He had been so preoccupied with his brother, that he had all but ignored her. She didn't blame him. After all, he obviously loved Kludd, and it was he that was dying, not her.

But recently, she got the impression that there was more to it than that. He was acting more distant from her, she was sure of it. Why else had she never seen him around, especially during breaklight and tweener? In fact, as he even left the infirmary? Not to her knowledge, that was for certain. There was the general opinion that he needed some space, what with the whole, lied-to-everyone thing...

"Well? Are you going to get it over with, or are you just going to sit there?" Soren asked quickly, a little harsher than he had intended.

Otulissa looked up in confusion, her eyebrows raised. "What are you talking about?" she asked quizzically.

"If you are going to get mad at me about lying to you, could you just do it already?" Soren clarified. It was more like pleading rather than an instruction.

"Wha..." she began, but trailed off. She got it! Of course he was hiding from everyone, he thought everyone hated him!

"I didn't come to get mad at you, Soren," she frowned, "I came because I wanted your company. You haven't exactly been around much, you know."

"You didn't?" now it was Soren's turn to be confused, "Aren't you mad at me for... lying to you about everything?"

"A little," she replied, slightly grinning, "But not much. If I was in your talons, I'd probably do the same thing."

"But I shouldn't have, that's the thing!" Soren almost exclaimed, and then quieted down. "How can you not hate me?"

"It really wasn't that bad, what you did," Otulissa responded gravely, fixing him in her gaze, "All in all, it probably was the right thing to do."

"No it wasn't," the other owl replied obstinately.

"What else would you have done? Look, I'm not sure WHY you did it, but I know that if you hadn't... Well, I'm not sure what would have happened..." Otulissa trailed off lamely, then looked up. "What I'm saying is, you did what you could. And that" - she stepped closer, so that she was almost touching him - "is very admirable."

Soren, almost against his own will, felt a trickle of warmth creep into his heart, but there still lied a bit of uncertainty within his heart, "But, Otulissa, it was Kludd that nearly killed you ten months ago…I thought…"

"It is not you that is accountable for the mistakes your brother made." Otulissa said firmly, "And it is not my place or kind of me to hold a grudge towards anyone…especially him and Nyra." She finished with an uneasy glance at Nyra, who was still despondent.

The barn owl took note and try to defend, "Look, I know she and Kludd made a lot of bad choices…even I have trouble getting over some of them, but…if it wasn't for both of them, we wouldn't be here right now."

"I see." Otulissa said, as she then gave a nod towards the white barn owl, "Well, I believe I should say thank you to her…but it seems like she is more out of it than you are."

"Who can blame her?" Soren agreed, sadly noting Nyra's silence, "She cared a lot about Kludd…"

"Wait, you mean…" The short-eared owl partially asked, realizing what her boyfriend meant. Soren gave a silent nod, and for the first time, Otulissa felt a bit of sadness for the ex-Pure One, "Poor thing…no one deserves to lose someone they love, not even her."

"Yes. All this time, I blamed her for Kludd becoming a Pure One and becoming the cruel owl we knew for a year, when in reality…it was me…"

"You?" The short-eared exclaimed.

Soren gave another nod, "Yes…I didn't realize till a few hours ago that Kludd was jealous of me and all the attention my father gave me. And it was my blindness to his jealously that eventually pushed him to become Metalbeak…maybe if I had seen it sooner, maybe he would of…"

"It's not your fault, Soren." Otulissa answered plainly, "The world works in mysterious ways, and I bet it wanted it to happen this way, besides, if Kludd hadn't become jealous of you, you would have never got kidnapped by the Pure Ones, and Kludd would have never met Nyra, and you would have never met Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight. You also would have never come here to Ga'Hoole, become a Guardian…and I wouldn't be able to do this…"

"Do wha-?" Soren asked before Otulissa connected beaks with him, instantly silencing him. In that moment, all his troubles seem to have become inexistent. Of course, those troubles would return, but for now, all his thoughts were of how extremely lucky he was to have someone like Otulissa. Then, a plan that he thought was ruined came back to mind, and given how his beloved didn't hate him, what did he had to lose?

The two owls' beaks parted, as they looked at each other's with eyes of everlasting love, and Soren said, "Otulissa, could you possibly join me outside the infirmary for a moment? There's something I wanted to tell you…"

The short-eared owl looked at the barn owl in confusion, but nonetheless agreed, as the two owls walked out of the infirmary. Unbeknownst to them, Nyra, during the couple's conversation, had slipped back into reality, and was the only witness as she saw Soren and Otulissa at the entrance to the infirmary, and was the only one to see Soren take the short-eared owl's wings into his own, and even though she did not hear the words he said, it became obvious when Otulissa burst into tears and tackled the barn owl to the ground with joy. Soren had just proposed to Otulissa, and she accepted it.

Nyra found it hard to believe that a few nights ago, she would have despise such a union, for Pure Ones usually looked down upon Tytos breeding with other species, or crossbreeding as they would call it. But now, all she could do was give a silent nod of congratulations that went unnoticed, but as she saw the two owls, her own heart started to ache once more. Her own beloved was fighting for his life right now, and if he were to die…she would have no one left. Her parents were gone, her best friend was killed by the hands of his own madness, her old mate was gone, and now…it was possible she would lose the one that had been ever so loyal to her the day they met. Oh, how she wished that she could feel his embrace, his warmth of his presence, and she could share one more kiss with him, for the last one was not as satisfactory (because of the situation they were in). Without Kludd, she felt no connection to the owls that surrounded him, no reason to stay here. Before she realized it, she was becoming despondent once more, not noticing Soren and Otulissa waking his parents to tell them the great news, the bit of sunlight within the storm of despair…

* * *

Elsewhere, perched upon one of the higher branches in Ga'Hoole, a female Elf Owl was busy observing the stars, or at least was trying to, for Gylfie had a lot on her mind. The thing that she was pondering? What it was that occurred between her and Digger back at the Pillar of Supremacy…

For being a smart owl, the feeling that she felt in her mind and in heart was all confusing to her. She knew that there was something special between her and Digger, it becoming more obvious during this quest that they had taken, especially given how Digger was willing to ferry her across back in the bog (despite how clumsy he was), how affectionate he was to her in his child-minded state, how he literally smashed a cell door at the thought of her being taken by Harris, and how viciously he fought against the hawks, and how close they were that night in the Peaks. This wasn't the first time she felt these feelings for it was the reason she was up early when she and Nyra talked about their past…

But tonight…Digger saved her life…twice, once from falling to her death and getting eaten by the soldiers corrupted by the Cannabis Regime, where Digger revealed that he would always be there for her…and the second, when Digger defended her against the desperation attack by Nix, who was driven by anger…and after confirming that the grass owl was knocked out and the burrowing owl looked her in the eyes…Gylfie blushed heavily at the memory…they shared what was their very first kiss. The elf owl gingerly placed her wing to her beak when she remembered how it felt…only to realize she couldn't describe it, for it was so good that words could not begin to describe it at all…but despite all the proof of the burrowing owl's devotion to her, the infamous question lingered in her mind, did he truly mean it?

Her train of thought was interrupted when she heard a male voice, "Hey, Gylf, whatcha doing up here?"

Gylfie turn her eyes toward the entrance of the hollow whose branch she was on, to see the cause of all the feelings running through her mind just standing there, looking at her with those wonderful green eyes. The elf owl gave a smile as she answered, "Oh, nothing much, Digger, just looking at the stars. You?"

"Eating." Digger answered plainly, "Out-running and nearly getting killed by cannibalistic owls that were once your run of the mill enemies does work up a mighty appetite." He churred while licking his beak, "I swear the worms missed me when I went to feast on them."

The Micrathene whitneyi (**scientific name for Elf Owl**) laughed at the joke (another good point she loved about him), before it trailed off into a sigh as she looked off into the distance.

Digger immediately took notice of this as he then asked, "Gylfie, are you alright?"

The female sighed as she answered, "Not exactly…I had been thinking…about what we did…back at the pillar…"

The burrowing owl's face immediately turns from joking to serious when she mentioned 'what we did'. Like Gylfie, he was thinking (which was uncommon, given how he wasn't a deep thinker) about that kiss they shared as well. He honestly did not know what came over him when he did kissed her…he figured that given how they almost died at the hand of that mean grass owl, it was merely a spur of the moment…but his heart knew better, for he believed it was something more. He just replied, trying to hide the blush that was becoming more apparent, "What about it?"

Gylfie let out a sigh; she knew that if she was going to get the answers she needed to clear her mind of such heavy feelings, she would have to be like Nyra was in battle: aggressive and upfront.

"Did you mean it?" She asked.

"Huh?" Digger asked, immediately caught off-guard by the question.

"Did you mean what you said to me, about always being there for me no matter what? Did you mean that kiss we shared? Did you mean all those subtle gestures you had aimed towards me?" She continued, her eyes piercing through Digger, desperate to know whether if the owl she had feelings for returned the same feelings for her.

Digger gave a gulp. His crush was practically offering an ultimatum for him, to either reveal his true feelings or be a coward and keep them hidden…needless to say, he was scared. It was without question that he loved her, but he couldn't bear to live with the thought of Gylfie deeming him unworthy of her because he wasn't smart or brave or strong, like Soren, Kludd, and Twilight were. But…a part of him, the same part that arised back at the Hawks' Ravine and at the Pillar, was actually pushing him to answer truthfully, to not be afraid of his own fears. It only took a few seconds to finally summon up all the courage that he had needed. With a deep breath, he began:

"Yes." Digger started simply, immediately causing Gylfie's stare to daunt, "I meant it. I meant it ever since I first met you. You had always been my best friend, what with your smarts and your kindness, but when I looked into your hazel eyes…I felt something more. I love you, Gylfie. I always had." Gylfie let out silent gasp, "The reason it took me so long to say those words was because I always felt you deserved better. I mean, look at me, even you have to admit I'm not the sharpest battle claws in the bunch, and the fact you are unbelievably smart made me so afraid that you would not return my feelings...but no matter what, smarts or no smarts, I will always love-"

Digger never finished that sentence, as Gylfie, overwhelmed by her crush's confession, kissed him, thus beginning their second kiss they had. Immediately did Digger's surprise faded as he gave into the blissful affection. Unlike their first kiss, which was short-lived due to Twilight interrupting them, reminding them of the place that was coming down around them, this connection of beaks lasted for quite a bit…but when it did end, it left Digger rather surprised, as Gylfie's eyes were now tearing up.

"Digger...I could never reject you...for I love you too." It was Digger's turn to be surprised, "But I always felt I was not good enough for you. I mean, to me, you are perfect: you're kind, you're funny, you always brought happiness to others all around you, and no matter what anyone would say against you, I would never agree with them, because I care so much about you...so much that I was afraid of what you would say if you didn't like me that way." Gylfie finished, a tear leaving her eye, as she nuzzled Digger in a embrace.

"Wow." The burrowing owl uttered, "All this time...we had feelings for each other that we were both afraid of showing...that sounds very...what word would you use for this, Gylf?"

"Serendipitous?" The female suggested, raising her head from the male owl's chest.

"Yeah, that's the word, sereedipity." Digger cheered, unaware of mispronouncing the word. Gylfie didn't correct him, though, for she did not care if he was smart or not, but Digger continued, as he then furrowed his brows in a questioning manner, "I just thought of something...what does this make us now?"

Gylfie let out a chuckle, "Well, I am not quite sure, but I believe that makes us boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Really?" The burrowing owl asked, his voice becoming lined with delight, "Can we make it official? Ya know, with another kiss?"

The female rolled her eyes at Digger's lack of subtlety, but she could not help but be very amused by it at the same time. So she obliged, as she kissed her crush-made-boyfriend once more, relishing in the beginning of their newfound relationship. But then Gylfie pulled away real quick, as she smack her tongue and beak..."Digger, I take it you helped yourself to some of the roasted vole?"

Digger let out a nervous chuckle, "Er, sorry, it just that I was so hungry..."

"No, it's fine." Gylfie said, as she licked her beak, "I kinda like it coming from your beak." As she then connected beaks with him once more. Although it was not for certain what the future would hold for these two new lovebirds...but right now, it seemed pretty sweet...

* * *

Back in the Parliament Chamber, as the events between Soren and Otulissa and Digger and Gylfie transpired, Ezylryb had spent the time explaining the entirety of their quest to the elder owls, from the bog to the hawks and to the peaks and up to Skarmoris, not leaving out any bits of detail with the exception of when Kludd had Soren at sword-point, for the old owl believed it would have not helped Kludd's nor Nyra's case. Eventually, Ezylryb had reached the last stretch of his story...

"...Then out of sprinking nowhere, Soren had found a strong thermal, and by utilizing the winds of it, we were able to get back here within a hour's time...and...well, that takes us back to right about now...so...make what you will of it." Lyze finished with confidence.

The entire room was silent, as everyone was shocked and enthralled by the story that the Screech Owl had told, even LaRoche himself, often a doubter of tales, was shocked by all the details that Ezylryb had went into. No one dared made a sound for a few minutes, unsure of what to say or make of what one of their eldest owls had told them...but eventually, it was Boron that broke the peace:

"Well...Lyze, that was...quite a story...never in my life had I ever heard a tale so...so..." Boron tried to word, for he didn't want to sound like he didn't believe him, but even he found it hard to find truth in all this story.

However, LaRoche, finally snapping out of his own shock, finish his sentence, "Unbelievable? A tall tale? Nothing more than fiction?"

"LaRoche..." Madame Plonk was about to scold.

But Ezylryb beat him to it, keeping a calm voice, "So I assure you, LaRoche, it is all true. I would never lie to my superiors."

"Said the mentor of the boy who lied to us about Metalbeak." The Elf Owl sneered.

"Leave the lad out of this, LaRoche." Bubo snapped, "It's not fair that we make the boy suffer for doing what he thought was right."

"What he thought was right?" Dewlap exclaimed, "He lied to us! He took an oath of speaking no words except true ones, yet he lied anyways. Not only that, he lied to protect METALBEAK, ENEMY NUMBER ONE!"

"He lied to protect his brother!" Strix defended, angry that the ryb of Ga'Hoology chaw and of the tracking chaw could be so unforgiving, "You are meaning to tell me that you would have just left your own kin to be killed by your fellow comrades?"

"I know I would." LaRoche answered simply, earning a glare from Stix.

"Everyone, calm down!" Barran demanded, "We are getting off track here. We are here to discuss what it is that we do now with Kludd and Nyra, not whether Soren was in the right or wrong."

"My mate is correct. We must decide what we should do with the boy." Boron stated matter-of-factly.

"It's pretty obvious...he should be sent away," Dewlap stated, "If we let him stay, it could be seen that we have accepted him solely due to his lineage. That will lower our standing of honor in the eyes of the owls, especially ones from the other kingdoms!"

"Oh phooey! Since when did we take our honor over doing the right thing?" Bubo exclaimed, flapping a little, "He is injured...because he sacrificed himself to defend his brother! If that does not make him worthy, I don't know what does!"

"Lower your voice, Bubo..." Strix Struma advises quickly, "We'll never get our point across by shouting..."

"You'll never convince me, either way!" LaRoche stated adamantly, "Personally, I think you are all taking this WAY TOO LIGHTLY!"

"Oh, hush, LaRoche," Dewlap sighed.

"Well, even if Kludd has changed, and we were to accept him," Madame Plonk reasoned, "What about the quee- Nyra? Do you think she would even want to stay here? And if she left, would Kludd want to stay here without her?"

"What are you insinuating?" LaRoche hobbled over to her, still a little sore on the legs, and eyed her intensely.

"Sit back down, LaRoche," the other owl sighed dismissively. LaRoche grudgingly obeyed.

"We should at least give them a chance," Strix Struma advised, "Ask them if they wish to stay. If they do not, well, fine. If they do, I think they deserve a chance."

"They had their chance at the beginning..." LaRoche mumbled from his position. Fortunately, no one heard him.

"They could pose a threat to the other owls," Madame Plonk replied warily, "Even if he has professed to be changed of heart, he still could have picked up a lot of dirty habits from the Pure Ones...and that queen of theirs, she never did seem the most stable of owls to me."

"_Like you happen to be an expert on Pure Ones..._" Bubo thought, crossing his wings.

"I really think that, if no one else, Nyra has to go, if not for our safety, but for hers," the female continued, "A lot of owls here must hold some grudge against her. She would bear the brunt of several years of hate."

"Are you implying that the owls are not bird enough to let bygones be bygones?" Strix Struma gasped with exasperation, "I say you underestimate your owls. I'll wager there is not one here who would hold a grudge against her, should we allow her to stay!"

"I would!" LaRoche piped in from the corner. Strix shot him the father of all death-glares, but the Elf Owl perseveres, "I mean, this is the queen of the Pure Ones we're talking about here! The mate of the owl that set that flecks trap on you all! The same wench who took part in the Battle of Ice Claws! And you are saying that everyone here would just forget all of that?!"

Strix was about to reply…but she could not argue with the Elf Owl for he had a good point…but Ezylryb answered for her, with an expression of great truth, "No."

LaRoche was about to make a snide remark to brag, but the Screech Owl continued, "But if you owls do choose to let them stay, I promise all of you that I will make both of them into owls you can depend on, into Guardians!"

"WHAT?!" The elf owl screeched, "You can't make a Pure One into a Guardian! That's like teaching seagulls how to read! And trust me, I tried!"

"Says who?" Lyze rebutted with a cocky grin, "They once said you can teach an old owl new tricks, yet I learn something new every day! Trust me, if I can lead a army into a seemingly un-winnable battle, I can surely make Kludd and Nyra into the best damn Guardians there ever was, just as good as Soren and the others, that's a promise!"

Everyone was muted once more, as LaRoche was trying to come up with another defense, but the old owl's words were so strong and inspirational that it left him without anything to say. Then, they turned to Boron, for the decision ultimately lied with the king. The snowy owl could not help but be a little flustered. It was one thing to decide to let two outsiders into their home and into their ranks, but a completely different matter to let Pure Ones, their greatest enemies, let alone their once king and queen. Not once in his time as king had he ever dealt with such a controversial decision. He knew for certain that he could not turn away the boy, for the fact that he was brother to the one who had lead the rescue that saved them from the Devil's Triangle a year back, the one who everyone own their lives to, no matter what, and honestly, compared to the original Metalbeak, the crimes Kludd committed were not as severe as his, sure he had attempted murder, but if what Soren and Lyze said were true, that was a matter he could overlook.

But then there was Nyra…he could name all the Guardians in this tree that had a bone to pick with her, including his mate Barran, who bitterly still remember the fight between them at Ice Claws. Hagsmire, he could still remember the darkness and malice in the white barn owl's eyes when they fought at St. Aegolius. Surely if they let her stay, it could result in a major uproar from everyone who hated Pure Ones as a whole with a passion…but then he thought of what Strix said, of them being bird enough to let bygones be bygones…can that really be possible? Can they really put the past behind them? Can the once king and queen of the Pure Ones become Guardians?

He knew clear well that the tree will not simply accept the truth, even he had troubles believing all of it, but regardless, he was a fair and just king, and despite all the evil that the Pure Ones had done, he was willing to let go of such a ridiculous grudge, for it was not his to hold. Sure, his ancestors that had come before him, such as the founder Hoole, would hate him for what he was about to do, and maybe everyone would start to lose faith in him…but as his old friend Lyze once said, 'it was the right thing to do.'

"I believe…" Boron started, "That this decision is not mine to make…nor is it anyone else in this chamber." Everyone looked at him in confusion, "I believe that the one who should decide is the boy himself. If and when the boy awaken, I shall ask him myself, and whatever choice he makes, we shall support it."

"WHAT?!" LaRoche, Dewlap, and Madame Plonk screeched, the elf owl continuing, "But sir, surely you must be joking!"

"I am not." Boron answered with absolute, "Of course, we shall have to keep our eyes on those two...but I had known Lyze for a long time, and he has yet to dissapoint me thus far...so, if there is any more objections..." He glanced around, as Bubo and Strix remain silent, secretly proud that he made the right choice, while Dewlap and Madame Plonk sighed in defeat for they had no choice but to agree, as LaRoche trying to come up with a rebuttal, but to no avail. "No? In that case...meeting adjourned. Please do return to your respective chaws and-"

"IDIOTS! YOU ARE ALL IDIOTS!" LaRoche screeched, outraged by the decision, "NO GOOD WILL COME OUT OF THIS! THIS IS ALL GOING TO BLOW UP IN OUR FACES!" As he was about to hop off his perch...but he stumbled as he did so and beak-planted into the floor. The other elders could not help but laugh, including the two that once agreed with him, even the king and queen smiled in amusement.

Ezylryb was laughing the hardest as he said, "Say, LaRoche, do ya need any help?"

LaRoche weakly raised his beak up at the Screech Owl and gave him a vicious death glare, as he picked himself back up and limped his way out of the chamber, but not before whispering loudly, "Glaux how I hate this damn tree..."

When LaRoche left the room, Boron continued, "As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted, please return to your respective chaws and we shall pick up where we left off when the boy wakes up."

With that, all the other owls got off their perches and walked towards the door and past Ezylryb, as Bubo and Strix gave him a nod of respect and mouthed 'good job', while Dewlap gave him a quick glare, and Madame Plonk didn't even glance at him, whether it was out of spite or confusion, the old owl didn't know. Soon, it just came down to just Boron, Barran, and the legendary hero...

"So..." Boron started, as he noticed Ezylryb's lingering presence, "What are you planning to do now, Lyze?"

"Well, given how I hadn't slept or ate, or even tend to my wounds since I got here, I think I'll take the next couple of nights off...that is if you are alright with it."

"Of course. Take as long as you need." Boron nodded.

With a smirk, the old owl turned to the doors and was walking out...and then looked back, "Oh...and thank you, Boron."

The elder snowy owl returned the smile, "Anything for an old friend."

With that, the old owl left the parliament chamber, probably off to catch up with the happenings in the tree and to check on Soren. As soon as Ezylryb was out of hearing distance, Barran turned to her mate and asked, "Are you sure that you know what you are doing?"

Boron let out a sigh, "I sure hope so, dear...I sure hope so..."

* * *

Shortly after the meeting was dismissed, Strix was busy walking throughout the tree to attend to her class in the navigation chaw, which was greatly delayed due to the return of the heroes...which soon turn ugly when LaRoche reared his ugly mug. The elder short-eared owl sighed, she did not look forward to having to deal with owls being hostile towards the ones who risked their life because they brought two Pure Ones home with them. Despite how they almost killed them a few months ago, she held no hate towards them, for she always lived by one motto, 'Forgive thy enemy for their flaws, only if they too see it'...only if other owls could do the same...

Suddenly, she heard something, prompting her to stop...it sounded like...the strumming of a lute? Immediately forgetting about her class, Strix Struma decided to follow the music to it's source, as she walked up the branches to one of the tree's highest perches...

Fortunately, she didn't have to walk far, as the music become more and more audible, and it sounded so beautiful (**In case you need to know what kind of music it is, think of a string acoustic version of Before The Dawn by Evanescence...without the words of course)**...who in the tree could be playing such a extraordinary piece of mus- her thought immediately stopped when a loud off-note string was strummed, and a deep voice groaned, "Ah, spronk."

"Twilight?" Strix said to herself, as she recognized the voice, when the beautiful music continued once more...only to end even more abruptly with another bad note, and another curse from his beak.

Strix quickly dashed up the branch to find the said Great Gray at the end of the branch, with his trusty lute in his hand, as he attempted to play the music he was strumming earlier...but again, he hit a bad note once more, as he let out a heavy sigh...

"Twilight? What are you doing up here?" Strix asked, before realizing she forgot to make her presence known, resulting in Twilight to quickly turn in shock...only to be relieved that it was none other than Strix.

"Phew...you scared me there for a bit." Twilight sighed, putting one of his own wings to his heart.

"What, me, scare you, Twilight, the almighty poet warrior?" The short-eared owl joked.

"Ha-ha." The Great Gray muttered, "Don't blame me for being on edge since I just came back from a very dangerous mission..."

"I don't." Strix said in her sweet voice, as she noticed the sullen expression on his face, "So what are you doing up here? Shouldn't you be with Soren?"

"Oh, me, Digger, and Gylfie decided to give the lad some space...you know, given the circumstances." Twilight explained, "And I had to clear my head the only way I knew how..." He holds up his lute, "By coming up with a new song...but as you probably heard, I am having some musician's block..." He finished with a heavy sigh.

"You're worried about that Kludd fellow, aren't ya?" Strix Struma asked.

"[Sighs]...I guess you can say that. He is Soren's brother, and...in all my time with Soren, I had never seen him so...so...empty." Twilight confessed, "I mean, I don't know what it likes, given how I never had any brothers, but if I had lost Digger...I would be crushed."

Strix gave a look of surprise, never before had she ever saw this side of him that wasn't all proud and boastful, and the fact he confided in her about how special his relationship with the burrowing owl that was always hanging around him was brought her earlier attraction to him back to life. She never thought he could be so...so...modest.

"So I take it you hadn't heard anything from the nurses?"

Twilight shook his head, "Not even a squack." Then he realized something, "Hey, did you just got back from that meeting with Ezylryb?"

Strix nodded, "Yes. In fact, I was heading to my class before I heard your wonderful music."

The great gray gave a scoff, "Wonderful, my foot...I appreciate your kindness, ma'am, but I doubt my music is all that good. I can't never to seem to get a song to sound good on it's own, it always needed a touch from Madame's choir...I find it hard to believe anyone would just like my music."

The navigational chaw ryb frowned at the gloominess permeating from the great gray. It pained her to see the once proud warrior/bard far down in spirits...for she started to have feelings for him a while back. She never told this to anyone, and she lied to her student about it, but when she learned that Allomere betrayed them, she thought she wouldn't find love again. She meant it when she said that Allomere was so serious and uptight, but that was what she loved about him. But then came along Twilight, who proved her predictions wrong. Sure, she was not one for love, but she knew she would have to find a mate someday, and maybe he was a bit boastful and arrogant at time, but that was what added flavor to his personality, and all his other features were all plus in her book...maybe if she were to act on these feelings...maybe it will bring that Twilight back to light.

"That's where you're wrong." Strix answered, "There is someone who not only liked your songs for what they are, but love both it and the bard himself."

The warrior quickly looked up at her, "Really? Who?"

"Well, I don't know for sure, but I do know that she doesn't like it when the bard is unable to play..." The short-eared said in a playful tone, refraining from laughing.

"She?" Twilight repeated, before moping, "Well, I wouldn't want to let a damsel down...but I don't know if I can do it...I can't get seem to get my music right at all..."

Strix Struma smiled, as she planned what she would do next, for she suggested, "Maybe you need a bit of _inspiration_..."

Twilight, completely oblivious, replied, "Well, I am not sure where I can get this inspira-" He was immediately interrupted when Strix gave him a short peck on the beak, that wasn't so long yet it yielded quite a profound effect. The Great Gray was stupefied that he could not put his reaction into words. He had all but forgotten about his plan to court the ryb when he got back, given with what happen to Kludd. At first Twilight looked at Strix to see if she had done it unintentionally, but all he saw was the seriousness yet a bit of playfulness in her eyes, immediately assuring him that it was not a joke or anything to that effect.

Quite amused by the turns of events just now, Twilight then asked, "Don't you have a class to be getting to?"

Strix churred, "What? And leave you all to your gloomy self? I think that the chaw can wait a little longer while I help you with that song you been working on."

The Great Gray gave a smirk, "Well in that case, let give this song another go!"

If anyone happened to be passing by through the tree at this moment, they could have sworn that they heard great melodious music, inspired by love, echoing throughout the hollows...

* * *

Nothingness…that was all that Nyra could feel in her feathers and gizzard. Time seemed to have come to a standstill…how long has it been since they first arrived here, with Kludd dying from his wounds? How long has it been since he was first taken into the hollow to be treated by Alice? How long has this pain, this blank void where her heart should be, had lingered? She did not know…or even want to know. All she wanted was this pain to stop, the same pain she felt when she lost her mother, her best friend, her mate, and her best friend once more…and now of losing the one owl she truly cared about.

It was pure agony, being alone in a world that did not give a damn whether you live or die, a world that always plots against you at every turn, and always took full satisfaction in making your life a living hagsmire. What was it that she did that made the world so mad with her? Wasn't she already punished enough for taking countless lives because of her and Metalbeak's selfish designs, hadn't she suffered enough?

"Nyra?" A voice echoed in her mind.

The white barn owl snapped out of her own despair once more, as she looked up to be faced with Noctus and Marella. When did they approach her? Nyra looked around and was surprised to find Soren alone once more, but not with the same sullen expression, and Mrs. P was busy keeping Eglantine busy as she was telling some drabble she could not read…how long had she been out of it?

Deciding to answer that question later, she turned to the two parents of the one she loved, and asked, honestly confused, "What is it?"

Noctus stole a glance at his mate and asked, "Well, it just that we never got the chance to actually thank you for saving our daughter's life back there…"

Nyra let out a sigh, remembering that instant…she didn't realize what came over her when she saw the owlet falling, for she could think about was her love, Kludd…maybe she felt a bit of responsibilities for those he cared about.

"Look…it was nothing," Nyra shrugged off.

"Nothing?" Marella repeated, "It was a lot more than nothing. You risked your life to save us, to save Soren, to save Eglantine, all of us…and we were your enemies."

"What's your point?" The white Tyto asked, a bit of frustration slipping in her tone.

Noctus answered, "Well…all this years, we had always thought the Pure Ones were not owls at all, but monsters without hearts. I mean, you had done a lot of horrible things that can't be justified…but I don't understand why you helped us there and now. I mean, we are suppose to hate you…"

"You should hate me." Nyra interrupted clearly, "If it was not for me..." The white barn owl looked away, "Kludd would be..."

"No." Noctus stopped her, "If it was not for you...Kludd would have lost himself...because, even though he came Metalbeak...he found a reason...every parent's job is to raise their little ones so they can choose their own paths in life. Kludd chose this path so he could hope to find acceptance, something that I had failed to give him. It was you however that gave him that. Even if it was for the wrong cause, you gave him a reason to live his life to the fullest, to survive even...and I will always be grateful to you for that. And we forgive you."

Nyra let out a silent gasp as she tried denying, "But...I...I don't deserve your gratitude...I don't deserve your forgiveness...I don't even know if I am worthy of being the one he loved."

"You saved his brother and his sister's lives. You even saved ours. If that does not make you mate-worthy of him, I don't know what will. No matter what my son choose..." Noctus paused and gave her a look similar to that of a father give to his daughter, "You have both our blessings..."

The white barn owl was surprised by the turns of events, so much in fact that she did not feel the bits of tears coming to her eyes. She wanted to say something, but the feeling in her heart prevented her from doing so. She was about to say something, when suddenly, a bunch of wings flapping sounds were made, as coming into the infirmary, was none other than Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight, with the former two in each others' wings...

"Hey, Soren, any news yet?" Gylfie asked.

Soren shook his head sadly, "Still nothing...and it worries me. What if something had gone wrong?"

"Don't think that, son." Noctus said as he patted his shoulder reassuringly, "Like Alice said so herself...she is the best nurse in all of owldom."

"Oh, I wouldn't go that far..."

Everyone in the room suddenly jolted up as they then turn to the hollow's entrance where they were curing Kludd to find none other than Alice, whose expression seemed tired from doing Glaux-knows-what in there. Soon, other nurses left the hollow past Alice, not as much as saying a word to the suddenly surprised crowd, as they left to tend to other businesses or get some sleep.

Immediately recovering from their shock, both Soren and Nyra, followed by Noctus and Marella ran up to Alice, almost running into her as they did so as Soren immediately demanded, "How is he?!"

"Is our son all right?" Noctus and Marella said in tandem.

"Please tell me that he's not..." Nyra pleaded.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, easy, people!" Alice shouted, raising her wings to calm the four owls, before she continued, "The operation itself was a success. We were able to stop the bleeding. Whatever stabbed him missed by a meager inch or so from the heart, and it is safe to say that he will make it."

Soren and Nyra both let out a great sigh of relief as they let out a quiet sob of joy, and Noctus and Marella both hugged each other tightly as they let out cries of joy as well. Watching from afar, Soren's friends could not help but cheer as well, as Digger and Gylfie grasped each other tightly and Twilight bragged proudly, "I knew he would pull through!" Even Mrs. P and Eglantine could not help but smile at this sight...but unfortunately, Alice was not finished...

"But however..." Alice said, hating herself for breaking this happy moment, as the other owls immediately stopped their celebration as they looked in shock.

"However?" Soren asked, "But...you said..."

"I know. And I meant it." Alice stated firmly, but she let out a sigh, "But one must understand, the lad already lost a lot of blood and given how he had fallen unconscious...it is with a heavy heart that I say this...Kludd is in a trauma-induced coma..."

* * *

Cold and darkness...it was such a pair that only Kludd felt as he slipped unconscious in his brother's wing, for he could not see, smell, hear, or even taste anything, and when it came to the touch, there was nothing...but suddenly, something very cold surged through his back, as the scarred face owl start to shiver. That's funny, when it suddenly get so cold? Even at the cliffs, the temperature was about-average, if not accounting for the wind that blew during that time...this coldness...was something he could actually feel. Then he felt something tap him, as a masculine voice called to him..."Kludd...Kludd...wake up, lad..."

Then, as if energy was suddenly coming back to him, and all his wounds that he had acculumated become meaningless, the young Tyto's eyes begin to flicker open. Blinking constantly, Kludd finally opened his eyes...to be met with the sight of the starlit sky, which instantly confused him, for when he had fallen unconscious, the skies were still stormy. Then the barn owl look around himself to met with a even bigger surprise...

He found himself not back at the cliffs...nor was he at Ga'Hoole...he was in the midst of somewhere he didn't know at all. All around him, he was surrounded by particular trees possessing no foilage and whose bark were as white as the snow that covered the grounds he was sitting on.

There was no sound whatsoever, except for that of Kludd's own breathing, as the scarred barn owl, immediately perturbed as to what was happening to him, could only ask one question that could come to his mind...

"Hello?"

* * *

**A/N: Well, that chapter is did and done. This chapter underwent a lot of changes. Originally, it was going to take place over three weeks, but then I booted it down to seven days, then down to twenty four hours...and then...I don't know. There were so many scenes that I had changed and cut, too much that I can count. I guess that what you get for not planning a chapter well enough. But in lighter news, the next chapter should come a lot more smoothly (I hope :\). In other news, I had recently bought books 2 to 6 of Guardians of Ga'Hoole from Barnes and Noble up to the final appearance of Kludd before he was killed in The Burning...and also, I read that Kathryn Lasky is writing her 16th book of the series, the Rise of A Legend, featuring Ezylryb and his past. Also, I had written and post two other stories for Kung Fu Panda, Forgotten Love (a lemon oneshot between Crane and Mei Ling), and Second Chance, my first chapterfic of Kung Fu Panda (which will be put aside till I finish this story). I want to say thank you to all the people that had waited patiently for this chapter (and no, Kludd is not dead), and all the new readers and reviewers for coming to read this and I am sorry if this chapter is not up to par with any of my other chapters...so READ AND REVIEW!**

**Also, I saw the trailer to the Playstation 4 and the new inFamous game...so here's a quote from their newest badass hero, Delsin Rowe:**

"_You are not...in control_"

- Deslin Rowe, in the upcoming inFamous game, Second Son

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated, deeply appreciated.**_


	24. When Darkness Turns To Light

**A/N: Okay, guys, I know I said this twice now...but I swear...this time, THIS IS THE SECOND-TO-LAST CHAPTER! Once this chapter is done, there will be an epilogue, and I will be proud to say that I finish my first chapterfic.**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole...if I did, this story would probably be its sequel.**

**I do not own It Ends Tonight or All-American Rejects**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl. I also claim ownership of the Deathbringer, the hagsfiend.**

**I want to thank Synchronized Harmony for his help with the chapter, couldn't had done it without you!**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Four: When Darkness Turns to Light

_"Now I'm on my own side, it's better than being on your side, it's my fault when you're blind, it's better that I see it through your eyes…all these thoughts locked inside…now you're the first to know."_

-a verse from It Ends Tonight by All-American Rejects

Everyone that stood in the infirmary were silent as soon as they heard the word 'coma' utter from the elderly nurse's beak, as the fear and pain returned not only Soren and Nyra's hearts, but in the parents of the inflicted as well. In fact, everyone in the room felt gloom returning to their souls, despite all the wondrous happenings that occurred, what with Digger and Gylfie's finally admitting their feelings and Twilight and Strix realizing their connection. Fortunately, the silence did not last long, for Digger, not being as good with words like his fellow companions, asked:

"Er, excuse me for asking this…but what's a coma?"

The other owls turned to face the burrowing owl in shock of such a mundane question, but Alice answered before any of them could say anything, "Well, Digger, lad, a coma is a state of deep unconsciousness that lasts for a prolonged period or indefinite period of time, usually brought upon severe illnesses or injuries." The burrowing owl looked at her with even more confusion, prompting the Screech Owl to let out another sigh as she simplified, "Basically, Kludd is now in a very deep sleep."

"Then why don't you wake him up?" A young voice asked, causing everyone to glance at Eglantine, who was still in her nursemaid's coils.

Alice frowned at the little one's innocence, and with a sad glance at Noctus and Marella, who in terms were donning the same expression, she said, "Eglantine…I'm afraid it's not that simple. Your brother in a kind of slumber that not even the loud screeches of bats or owls could wake him up."

"Then what will?" Soren asked, desperate for an answer, "I mean, if he's not dead, that means he is still living, right?!"

The Screech Owl sighed, "I don't know, lad. I had many patients in my line of work that ended up like Kludd. But as much to my knowledge, only a few of them ever do wake up from it…"

"And what about the others?" Nyra asked, her heart dreading the answer.

The nurse glanced at the barn owl with sympathy, as she said, "I rather not discuss that possibility, it will do no one any good…"

"Oh glaux…" Nyra whimpered as her talons fell weak, almost falling to the ground before Noctus and Soren caught her.

"Oh dear…" Alice whispered, as she then turned to the remainder of the band and Mrs. P and Eglantine, donning a concerned expression, "I think it is best that you all leave the infirmary for now."

"But Alice…" Eglantine tried to deny, for she wanted to remain by her brother's side, before Mrs. P stopped her.

"It will be fine, dear. Your family and Nyra need some alone time right now…" The blind snake replied calmly, but even then, she felt her own voice quivering with dread, but that was understandable. Eglantine, being a more perceptive owl than others would think, took note of it, but the owlet let out a defeated sigh, as she and Mrs. P left the infirmary.

Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight all shared unsure glances at the nurse's request, for they too feared for Kludd's life as well, despite how less significant their connection to him was compared to his family and his love…but by the way Alice looked at them, they knew not to disobey their elders. So, after the snake and the owlet, the three followed, but not before giving Soren a nod or whispering, "It will be all right." Leaving only Kludd's parents Noctus and Marella, his brother Soren, and his queen and lover Nyra, as well as the nurse Alice left in the peculiarly empty infirmary (you think that they would be more owls, given how they rise up to defend the kingdoms).

Marella looked at Alice with pleading eyes, as she asked, "So there is nothing we can do? Nothing at all?"

"Well, I don't really know what to say, Marella." Alice admitted, "Owls in comatose state are next to impossible to wake up. Many owls had been trying to find ways to cure a coma, but the only method that had been proven the most effectual was to wait it out, and even then, it's not guaranteed."

"Alice, please, there got to be something." Soren begged, as he and Noctus brought Nyra back to her feet and laid her against the wall (only to slump against it), "Are you sure there is absolutely nothing we can do?"

The Whiskered Screech Owl was about to say yes…but then she thought of something…a possible method that has a chance of working…but it was a long shot…but seeing how distraught the four Tytos were, she had to try.

"Well, Soren, I think there is one way…"

"Really?!" The Alba family exclaimed, (**Note: I don't know if owls have last names in the series, but I just say that Soren's family name is Alba**) as Noctus demanded, "Please! Tell us!"

"Calm yourself, Noctus, I don't want you throwing your back again!" Alice scolded sternly, before turning to Soren, "Soren…I had heard around the tree that your sister was once moonblinked, am I correct?"

Soren looked at her oddly, confused by the question, "Uh, yes…she was. But-"

"Mrs. Plithiver told me that you were able to cure Eglantine of this said ailment. Do you recall how?"

The barn owl was about to ask what relevance these questions possessed, when suddenly, it hit him. He did remember that when he was watching over Eglantine in her blinked state telling her of how the legends their father told them came to be all true, and as if it was a miracle, the little owlet was able to snap out of it, and returned to her innocent, joyful self. Could it be that Alice is…?

"Of course…it was me talking to her that did it." Soren replied.

"Precisely." Alice nodded, "Now, I know it's not much to go on, but I have heard instances were comatose patients were able to wake up by hearing familiar voice patterns. It is possible that if Kludd hears voices of owls he recognized, he might be able to wake up."

"Then that is what we must do!" Soren stated in determination, hope reigniting in his heart.

"But Soren, it might not work…you were lucky with Eglantine, what we're not with Kludd?" Marella questioned, doubts plaguing her mind.

"I realize that, ma." Soren answered without turning to face her, "But it's better than doing nothing while your own blood is in his own nightmare in which he cannot wake up. If Alice says that there's a chance, then I'll take it!"

"Words well put, lad." The Screech Owl nodded, "Kludd is in the hollow right now, but for the sake of not overcrowding, it is best that two at most in the hollow at a time. So…which one or two of you want to go first?"

"We will." Noctus step forth, "Maybe if Kludd hears his parents' voice…"

"It's worth a try, da." Soren agreed, "Go ahead. Me and Nyra will wait out here."

Letting out a sigh, the father shared a glance with Nyra, who couldn't (or wouldn't, he could not decode the blank, pained expression on her face) face him, and then with his mate, who in return gave a nod as they ventured into the hollow where Kludd was resting…

* * *

Silence…nothing but sheer silence was all that graced Kludd's ear slits as he found himself within a forest he did not recognized, let alone know had it was he came to be here. Needless to say, it both frightened and confused the scarred Barn Owl.

"Hello?" Kludd called out, hoping that someone would answer him…but instead, he was greeted with the echo of his own voice, the word he said repeating continuous until it became silent once more.

The barn owl grew a bit uneasy, as he looked around for any other signs of life, but as far as his eyes saw, there were nothing but more and more of the peculiar trees whose color matched the ground he laid upon.

"Is anyone out there?!" The Tyto screeched again, as he slowly rose from the ground to get a better perspective of his surroundings…but then he realized something: didn't Maurice, who had caused his unconsciousness in the first place, stab him? If so, then why was it that he was standing let alone breathing? The barn owl immediately inspected his body, only to be shocked that the wound on his body wasn't there…but a scar stood in it's place.

"What in hagsmire is going on here?!" Kludd screeched, not talking to anyone in particular…but his question was only bounced back at him, courtesy of the echo that was found only here. Realizing that standing around was doing nothing; Kludd decided that the only logical thing to do was to fly. With that plan thought out, he spread his wings and took to the sky…only to be met with more surprise as all he saw around him, just like on the ground, were nothing but trees as far as the owl's eyes could see.

"_Where am I?_" The Tyto Alba thought bitterly to himself, as he began to fly around, hoping to get more answers, surveying the grounds and the sky at the same time for anything that might shed light on this situation.

For what seemed like an hour, the owl had been flying through the woods, shifting his eyes left and right for anything that stood out…but as he did, something disturbing was starting to become more relevant…he had been flying in a straight line for a while, yet the trees he passed all looked the same, in fact, each one of these trees were just alike the one next to it, same height, same numbers of branches, same distance between each trees…and even more so, why hadn't he reached the end? Although he spent most of his time either cooped up in the hollow with his family or in St. Aegolius, he knew for certain that there were no forests to his knowledge that was this expansive nor repetitive in it's vegetation…it became obvious that something wasn't right.

His wings growing tired, the scarred Barn Owl perched onto one of the tree's branches, as he let out a couple pants of exhaustion, his breath visible due to the cold air.

"_Glaux…what's going on here? I wake up in the middle of this sprinking forest, where I had seen nothing but trees, trees, and…what do you know, more trees! And what kind of forest is this if there is no one here? There's not even a mouse here!_" Kludd's mind ranted, his situation frustrating him to no end. "_I just don't understand…all I remember was defeating Deathbringer with Soren, landing back on the cliffs, talking to Maurice, returning to Nyra and the others…then Deathbringer coming back…and…_" Kludd's blood ran cold. He looked at his scar as a shocking thought came to mind… "_Oh my glaux…I lost a lot of blood from that wound…oh no…no, no, no…am I…am I d-_"

A sound of a twig snapping brought Kludd out of his shocking realization as the barn owl immediately turned around and shouted, "Who's there?!"

No one answered, angering Kludd even more, "Show yourself! Or I swear I'll rip-" He tried threatening with his battle claws…before he realized that his talons had nothing equipped to it. He was unarmed. The barn owl's heart began beating faster, for he had a feeling in his gizzard that he was not alone, contrary to previous thoughts. Not willing to be caught off-guard, Kludd clutched the limb he was perched on as he tried to break it off, hoping to use it as a makeshift weapon as his brother had before…but then, as if out of nowhere, a voice echoed:

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"What?!" Kludd ceased his efforts as soon as he heard it, "Who said that?!"

However, whomever spoke ignored his question as it continued, "These trees hold special values to the denizens here. I don't think they would take kindly to a stranger breaking off a part of their home…"

"Denizens?" Kludd repeated, as he looked around, "There's no one here!"

"On the contrary, lad, these woods are filled with life…but they are only visible to ones who they shared a connection with…if such a connection doesn't exist, neither do they to you." The voice explained.

Kludd looked around, growing more confused, "I don't understand…where am I?!"

There was no answer, much to the owl's increasing frustration…but then another sound began to echo throughout the air…the sound of…wings flapping? Kludd immediately tried to pinpoint the origin of the wingbeats, as his eyes darted left and right…when suddenly…his eyes caught sight of a blur…

"HEY!" Kludd screamed as he then flew after it. Fortunately, it was not hard to track movements between the trees, given how they all resembled each other. The scarred Tyto flew as hard as his wings could carry him, the distance between him and the unknown blur decreasing. "COME ON! PLEASE, STOP!" The barn owl screeched after the unknown figure.

But it did not heed, but Kludd was slowly catching up with it…and within a few seconds, the unknown being's wings were within reach of his talons. Upon noticing it, Kludd spread his talons and were about to grab them…before the being about-faced, immediately knocking the barn owl against the branch of another tree. Kludd let out a hurt groan as he grasped his abdomen…before he heard the voice once more…except instead of it echoing…it was talking to him face to face.

"Not bad, boy. It seems like my mate's training had paid off over the year."

In that moment, the voice became instantly familiar to the scarred Tyto. "_What? No…I recognized that voice anywhere…_"

Looking up from his branch to face the owner of the voice, his heart and gizzard dropped to his feet, as on a branch of a nearby tree stood a big Sooty Owl. Although there were no familiar features the owl possessed, he recognized those golden eyes…and all Kludd could say, as nothing else seemed to make sense anymore was…

"M-Metalbeak?"

The owl, although he no longer had any of the scars that made him into the infamous owl he was before, just smirked, "Actually, I prefer the name Surtr…"

* * *

Noctus and Marella took slow but deliberate steps as they made their way into the hollow. As soon as they first step in, they were relieved that the hollow was clean, void of any blood spatters or other perturbing body fluids, meaning that either that Alice and her nurses did a good job in their patching up of their son…or they are really great at cleaning hollows. That question did not hold any value however, for the center of their attention was diverted towards the other end of the hollow, where the limp body of their eldest son lied, his eyes closed and his chest slowly rising, barely noticeable to those that were not as attentive, and his talons un-armed, for his battle claws were placed off to the side.

"Oh…" Marella stifled down a sob as she and her mate approached their son, "He looks so peaceful…"

"That he does…" Noctus agreed, as he looked over the younger Tyto Alba. Given how it was a year since he had seen him up close, had it not been for his fatherly intuition, he would have not been able to recognize him. Back before Soren and Kludd were taken by the Pure Ones, Kludd's feathers were smooth, and his appearance always seemed so clean…but now, the barn owl's feathers were all but ruffled, as scratches and bruises laced his body, ones that were much older than the ones he had procured from his fight against Skarmoris, especially around the face. The most notable scar that Noctus could not ignore was the burn mark on the left side of his face, feathers barely starting to cover all the burnt skin…but that scar remained there. Noctus' heart ached…all these scars…all of it was inflicted by him…because he failed to take notice of him…and for that, he had left a much greater scar in his own son's heart…all he wanted was acceptance from him…only acceptance, and he, his father, failed to give him that. He wanted to say something, but no words could come out…what was it that he could say, that could make up for years of negligence?

However, his mate beat him to it, as Marella said, "Hello, dear…it's me…your mum…I know we hadn't talked in a while…mostly because we did not know that if you were still alive…but I hold no hate towards Soren for that. But even if you were one of _them_…I would have still loved you. In fact, the past year we spent thinking you were dead had to been one of the worst year of my life…for both of us. I spent every night thinking of all the words that I didn't say, all the things I didn't do, always regretting that I never got to say 'I love you' before we lost you…but when that monster revealed you…I could not help but feel joy that my first son was alive and well…I didn't care that you were king of the Pure Ones…because to me…you were always my little owlet…and I do not know if you can hear me right now…but I shall say this: I love you, Kludd, as much as a mother could love all her children as possible." With that speech finished, the mother shed one tear as she kissed her son on the forehead.

Noctus stood shocked…all year, his mate had always seemed to crumble whenever Kludd was brought up, almost always breaking into tears. He had always figured his mate to not be as emotionally strong when it came to these situations, leaving it to Noctus to act as a shoulder to cry on…not once did he realize that she could be as strong as he was…or he think he was…

Marella turned to her mate, her now misty eyes telling him that it was his turn to say something that could possibly bring their son back to them. The elder barn owl let out a deep sigh, as he went up to his son. At first, he remained silent, trying to formulate the right words…but as he looked at his son's peaceful expression, his guilt got the better of him, swallowing up all the planned words. He found it hard to believe that he could tell a story regarding the Guardians from heart, yet he could not even find the words to say to his first son…but he had to persevere, not only for Kludd, but his own sake…so…he did what his son, Ezylryb, and any other Guardian would do…he went with his gizzard.

"Hey there, son…" The father started, "It's your father…" Noctus held back a breath. Was he even worthy of being his father anymore? "I wished I would have been able to find something better to say…but…I thought you were dead for all these months…I thought those monsters took away one of the four most precious things I cherished…but in reality, the Pure Ones were not at fault…it was even wrong for me to presume that…I was the one who pushed you away…" Noctus paused as he felt a lump in his throat…

"Dear…" Marella tried to soothe…

"No. You were my oldest son. I should have known better that you were trying with all your might to prove yourself to me…and what did I do? I just told you to try harder…and when I saw Soren had potential, I just ignored you like yesterday's hunt…" Noctus's voice started to quiver, "Then this whole mess with the Guardians and the Pure Ones started…and when Soren told me you died in that battle…I felt my heart shattered into a million pieces. I felt nothing but regret for the last twelve months, wishing I could say how much I cared about you one more time…but then there was tonight…"

"Noctus, please…" His mate pleaded, as she took notice of the beads welling up in his eyes.

"I was so angry…angry that you turned your back on everyone who loved you. Even outraged by those words you said…but they were all true…I was your father yet I failed to show you even the slightest amount of pride…" Noctus tried to keep tears from leaking from his eyes, but to no avail, "Then…what you did…when you saved Eglantine…and stayed behind to face Skarmoris…and when you took that b-blade…" The barn owl's voice started to break as guilt and remorse sent him into agony, "I j-just want to say…I was a-always proud…of you. No matter…what you did…I was always…proud to call you…my son." With that, he then broke into a heavy sob, letting out audible cries, "Glaux…I love you, Kludd. I AM SO SORRY!"

With that, the male crumbled down to his knees, his mate looked on with shock and sadness as he let out wails of pain. Doing what he done for her, the female wrapped her wings around the older male, shudder vigorously with each whimper…one would agree that it was heart wrenching to see what it was that it took to break someone as composed as Noctus…guilt, regret, and pure agony, a triple threat upon any mortal…and it seemed like nothing could sooth him now…

Noctus's sobs were not contained within the hollows, for it could be heard from outside, shocking Soren, who was patiently waiting outside the hollow, leaning against the wall nearby Nyra, trapped in her own pained reality, while Alice, already exhausted from her attending to Kludd, decided to turn into her hollow, but not before giving her condolences, whispering that she did all she could... In all his life, he had never once heard his father cry so much, not even when Kludd was dying…he found it hard to believe that even the strongest of them could crumple down like that…and it only made his own regrets hurt much more…

Outside of the infirmary, Gylfie, Digger, Twilight, Mrs. P and Eglantine were waiting as well. They did not hear the wails of a father, wallowing in his own regrets…but they could all sense in their gizzard (Mrs. P didn't have a gizzard, but she had a sense that matched it) that someone was in deep agonizing pain. None of them dared say a word, for the fear of saying something that would be inappropriate. Suddenly, a sound of metal clanking against the ground began to emanate, as the group turned towards the origin of the sound…to see none other than Ezylryb, slightly hobbling as he had yet to replace his metal talon…

"Sir/Ezylryb/Eazelly!" All of them spoke at once, the Elf, Burrowing, and the Great Gray Owl addressing him by sir, Mrs. P and Eglantine by name (although Eglantine still had trouble pronouncing his name).

"Hello, everyone…may I ask why it is that you all are out here is?" Ezylryb questioned, as he found it quite odd that his apprentice's friends and family all out here.

"It's Kludd…Alice told us that he's fine…" Gylfie answered.

"But?" The Lyze of Keil asked, fearing that there was some bad news coming.

But Digger continued, "But that he's in a…a…" The burrowing owl could not recall the name.

"A coma, dear." Mrs. P replied sadly, "A very deep sleep…according to Alice, he might not wake up."

Ezylryb frowned deeply. Although he was not as educated in medical terms, he knew what a coma was…he bitterly remembering having lost a few good men to this ailment…sure, a coma was a step up from death, but honestly, was it any different? He was still unconscious, existing not of this world but in another one entirely. For that matter, is coma any better than death, or is it worse?

His thoughts were interrupted when a young voice asked, "Uh…Eazelly?"

The old owl turned to face the young owlet within Mrs. P's coils, she looking at him oddly, as she asked, "What do you have in that bag?"

She was gesturing to the satchel that was wrapped around the Screech Owl's body, which belonged to the head nurse. Ezylryb, deciding to sate her curiosity a little, but not much, for it was personal, replied, "Not that it is of anyone's concern…but I believe I have something to return to two owls I know." He then looked into the hollow, "I take it that the others are…"

"Yes." Twilight answered, "But I have a bad feeling that it's not pretty."

"I see." The old owl nodded, the strong sense of gloom permeating from his gizzard, "Well, I won't be long." And with that, Ezylryb walked past the group into the infirmary…

The old owl was soon met with a sight so sad as he saw his apprentice, his face stricken with pain, and a good reason, too, as sounds of an owl crying lightly echoed throughout the room…and judging by it, he could easily sense that the one that was crying was none other the boy's father. He could not help but be surprised by how pain, no matter the kind, could have such a glaux-awful effect on an owl that outmatched that of flecks or any weapons imaginable. It was such emotions that he could imagine was going through Noctus's head that he was all too familiar with…especially given what happen with…Lyze's thoughts went silent as he then decided to address his apprentice.

"Lad."

Soren immediately snapped out of his pained stupor as he turned to face the old owl that made the address, and was greatly relieved that it was his mentor. "Oh, sir…it's just you…"

"How are you feeling? I heard from your friends that our brave lad had fallen into a coma. Is that correct?"

The barn owl nodded, the reality of what had befallen his brother still sinking in, "Yes. My ma and da are in there trying to wake him up. He had lost a lot of blood…but he is still living…if you dare call it that…"

"Lad…" Ezylryb sighed, as he went up to him and place a wing on his shoulder, "Kludd can rise above this. If he could take command of one of the Guardians' greatest foes, rise against it, and defeat an owl with power that greatly outnumbered his all in one year, surely he could pull through this without a sweat." He finished, hoping that his words would reassure him.

But all it did was fall on deaf ears as Soren continued, "You know…I never once heard my father cry…before I met you and the Guardians, I always found him to be the strongest owl I ever met…but…now as I hear it for the first time, I never heard something so…soul-sucking and heart-breaking all my life. I never realized that my da could just crumble to nothing…all because of a mistake I made."

"Soren. Stop blaming yourself." Ezylryb demanded, "It is just one mistake. One mistake such as that is nothing to beat yourself up about. I had seen many other owls make bigger errors on their parts…and still find the strength to forgive themselves. I know it will take time, but everyone will soon get over it. The only important thing is that you…not anyone else…you forgive yourself. If Kludd can do that…if I could do that…" He muttered the last part to himself, "Then you can do it too."

Soren let out a deep breath, as he solemnly agreed with his teacher, "You know…Otulissa told me the same thing…and maybe you are right…"

"Your fiancé is quite wise." Ezylryb churred, "You should make it a habit to listen to her more often." The Tyto Alba immediately flinched when he said fiancé, and he turned around, cheeks flushing, ready to ask how it was he knew, when Lyze just answered, fully expecting his reaction, "Just call it Gizzuition, lad. Normally, I would offer my congrats, but given the circumstances…"

"I understand, sir. Thank you. For everything." Soren nodded, feeling the cloud of dread lifting…not entirely, but just a bit…but then he turned to Nyra… "I wished things can be likewise for her…"

The old owl's expression dampened as he looked at the white barn owl leaning against the wall, inconsolable and incoherent to all of her surroundings. He pitied the poor owl…for as of tonight, she had lost the last of her family that was ripped away from her by the hands of fate and talons of other owls…his included. Without Kludd, she was left without a friend or someone who cared about her in the world…and he doubt that there was anything that could be done to relieve her of this pain…but maybe he could try…

He walked towards the owl precariously, trying not to agitate her (if that was even possible right now), and as soon as he was face to face with her, before Soren could ask of what he was doing, the old owl started: "It's not your fault, Nyra."

The white barn owl remained motionless, as the Screech Owl continued, "I may have not known you for a while, especially given with what I done to you, Maurice, and Surtr…but I did know Surtr…and through Soren, I had learn much about Kludd. For the first time in my life, I had seen the side of you that I never thought I would see again since the Battle of the Ice Claws…the Nyra who cared deeply for her family, be it of blood or not, for they were all you had…and tonight, I saw her again…and I could not be happier. I know you are shattered…but Surtr and Kludd both know that you are not that kind of owl who just fades away to nothingness…after each tragedy, you had found the strength to rise up once more, stronger with each reprisal. That is possibly one of many great things that Surtr and Kludd saw in you that made you the most desirable to both of them. You had done some stupid things, there's no mistake about that, but that does not make you no less deserving of forgiveness. Kludd pulled you out of your despair…but now he needs you to do the same for him…but if you need more convincing…maybe I should leave it to _him_." With that, he suddenly reached into his satchel with his beak, pulling out a piece of a familiar helm and with it, a letter bounded with a seal…

"Sir? Is that…" Soren asked, as he instantly recognized the helm of the infamous Metalbeak that his brother and the Sooty Owl he killed a year earlier had worn.

Ezylryb ignored him as he went on to explain; "I found it in your old hollow back at the pillar sandwiched in a book. I figured it was written by Surtr…I didn't know who it was to till a few minutes ago…but when I did…I realize that it was meant for you." He placed the remnant of the metal mask and the letter down, and quickly flipped the said letter, revealing a hastily scribbled signature…but what it said could not had been clearer…

It said, '_Nyrae_'. In that moment, Nyra's eyes began to flicker into consciousness, as she let out a silent gasp, tears threatening her eyes…

"I don't know what that letter has to say…but my gizzard tells me that it is something worth hearing, and my gizzard had never once let me down…now if you would excuse me, I have to return this satchel to a special friend…" He then turned away as he quickly glanced at Soren, "Where is Alice, Soren?"

Soren, slightly distracted by the speech he gave Nyra, quickly snapped into it as he answered, "I believed she returned to her hollow…it's not far from here, though."

"Good." Ezylryb nodded, "Let me know if Kludd do wake up, alright, lad?"

The barn owl returned a nod…before realizing he forgot to ask him something important, "Wait, sir! How did the meeting…" But before he could finish, the old Screech Owl was out of hearing range, "go…" Soren finished, wings drooping, inwardly cursing for forgetting. Deciding he will ask him next time, he turned to face Nyra, only to be surprised as he saw her actually grasping the letter that Lyze gave to him.

Nyra observed the letter with scrutiny…at first glance, she could tell that the letter was indeed old, as she could feel a bit of dust wafting in her beak…and she could not help but wonder if the piece of parchment was even real at all…but she quickly scratch that thought…Lyze may be a grouchy piece of racdrops at time…but she knew that he wouldn't be capable of such cruelty. Besides, it was the seal on the letter that truly disproved that theory, for it bear the symbol of the Pure Ones. And the fact that it was addressed to her by her name Nyrae…her heart quivered at the memory of not liking being called that name while embracing it as her best friend and Surtr call her that. Unable to bear the mystery of the letter's contents, she swipe a talon through the seal, not caring if it meant desecrating the Pure Ones' name…

The letter immediately folded open upon the severing of the seal, revealing all that it has to say to the white Tyto. Without any hesitation, she began to read…and as she did, she sensed that her late husband, Surtr was reading it for her…

_Dear Nyra, my true beloved…_

_If you are reading this…it would mean that I had perished under the weight of my own dark designs. Over the past year since I had first donned that mask that made me into who I was today, I could not see what it was that I become…not realize the consequences of my actions…blind to my own flaws…till it was too late. The night and the one before we had relocated to Saint Aegolius, I had made two grave mistakes, mistakes that I wished I could take back…I had struck you out of anger, when it was you that had the right to be angry with me…and when I saw Maurice with you…I had accused him of trying to take you away from me…when he was just trying to protect you from the monster that I had become. Because of my anger and jealously, I had exiled the one that I called son, sent him out into the unforgiving world…and I had hurt you, the beautiful seraph who I had the great pleasure and blessings to be mated to…Maurice was right when he had said that I had no right to call you my mate…I was greatly surprised that you chose to stay with me even after what I done to you, and for that, I had not been grateful enough._

_I found it pathetically ironic that I once sought to bring a end to this foul war that our forefathers had started…only to become it's next pawn in this proverbial wargame. I became so consumed with anger and agony that I had forgotten all the promises we had made, about leaving the Pure Ones and starting a family…I took our dream of a better future and turned it into something so vile and evil, that it's sickening. I wrote this letter because there was something I wanted to say…and I feel that this demon inside of me, the one known as Metalbeak, shall deny me the chance to do so ever again._

_I love you, Nyra, more than anything in this forsaken world, and I would love you forevermore…but I cannot…no, I will not drag you down into the nightmare for which I had woven. It may be too late for me…but if I known your father, you can still live on. When the inevitable comes, and I meet my ultimate oh-so-justified demise…I demand…no…beg you to leave the Pure Ones, soon to become as corrupted as me, and never look back. I want you to find someone else to be your mate, someone who will love you as much as I did, who would cherish and treasure you like a goddess…who can give you what I cannot…a family. A few months before the battle that changed everything, I was told that I was infertile, incapable of giving you an egg to carry on our legacy…and I was such a coward to keep it a secret from you, I even swore Maurice to secrecy. So…I pray that you find someone who can give you the happiness you deserve, provide you with the love that I denied you, and may you and the lucky owl you choose, Tyto or not (preferably a Tyto, though), live a long and joyous life together…no matter what becomes of me, I will always treasure our time together for all of eternity…_

_P.S. If you happen to find Maurice again…tell him I'm sorry._

_I love you…_

_Metal-_

(Before the name was completely written, it was crossed out)

_Surtr_

The letter dropped out of the white Tyto's talon, not because it had slipped, but because of the reaction that soon followed as Nyra read those last words. It started with her body shuddering…then tears started to drip onto the letter, and soon, Nyra dropped to her knees as she began to sob heavily, as she buried her face into her wings.

"Nyra!" Soren quickly jumped as he went to her side, "Are you alright?!"

Nyra did not answer, for she let out another cry…but oddly enough, the way her cries sounded…it was not that of agony…sure it had sadness in it…but her wails seemed laced with…merriment, in fact, she was partially laughing. It troubled the Guardian owl that she was crying and laughing in tandem…then he noticed the letter at her feet. He knew better than to read someone else's letters, but with the way Nyra was reacting, he could not help but be curious…so he picked it up, and gave it a quick glance…then it hit him. Of course, his reaction was nothing compared to that of the author's mate, he felt as if he was given a new understanding on life…despite hearing firsthand of all these truths from Maurice, this letter…just proved all of it right.

Soren gave a glance towards the broken shard that lied next to where the letter was…he might had hurt Nyra when he killed Metalbeak…but he now felt something else…like Otulissa said, maybe it was meant to happen. His regret of killing the Sooty Owl had all but dissipated…for in the end, he had done him a great justice, like Kludd had done for Maurice, freed them both of a curse that loomed over their head. Surtr and Kludd were not the ones responsible for all the pain they caused…it was the mask and the name Metalbeak that had unleashed this evil…but as far as anyone was concerned, Metalbeak was no more…nothing more than a meager shard filled with bad memories. With a nod to the inanimate object, he did as Ezylryb done for him and placed his wing on her shoulder, as he comforts her…

* * *

Ezylryb sighed, as he trudged almost aimlessly towards where he hoped to find his... Er... favorite acquaintance, Alice. His answers from Soren and Nyra had been hardly enlightening, given how broken up Soren was about his father and how despondent Nyra was... Alice should know for sure. She could even have some new information. Plus, he also had to return her satchel. It was empty now, of course, but a little... ripped in the strap area. He hoped she would understand about that.

Soon, he arrived at the hollow where his friend lived and there she was. Standing there. Of course, by the way she just looked up at him from a parchment she was reading, she had probably been expecing him. Like always. What was it with his eyes, if he could notice hidden dangers with ease, but miss the love of his life? Wait, had he just thought that?

"Why, Ezylryb, what a pleasant surprise." The old female churred, "What brings you here?"

"Hey there, Alice," he said in greeting, "I, er...came to return your medical sack."

"Well, I WAS wondering what had happened to that," she replied wryly, stepping closer to take the sack in her talon, "Why, what happen to it's strap? What have you been doing with it?"

The Lyze of Keil was a little slow to answer, probably because his nose had been filled with her smell. She smelled like medicine, and he was mulling over the alarming thought that she might taste like medicine as well...he shook himself, in an attempt to answer. "Well, this other owl's claws got caught in it..."

Alice wasn't quite sure what to say about that, so she just took the sack with a smile. As she did so, she noticed his talon. More specifically, she noticed his artificial, metal talon... Or what was left of it. It was crumpled, as if something had stepped on it with great force.

Her medical curiosity kicked in. "What happened to your foot?" she asked without hesitation.

Ezylryb followed her gaze to his talon, and shrugged. "Same owl stood on it."

The female looked up with a skeptical gaze. She obviously wanted a little more detail than that... But she had something better to take her attention. Namely, the semi-healed scratch on his face. "Did that owl also get your face?"

"Now that I think about it, yes, yes he did. He was what some would call a super soldier..." Ezylryb trailed off, then attempted to lighten the situation a little with a joke. "He's the one responsible for stealing my good looks."

Alice shook her head, grinning despite herself. "Naw, I kind of like the battle-scarred look," she said, then snapped back to business mode, "But come, I'm gonna have to patch that up, you know."

The Lyze of Keil groaned. "No, it's fine, you don't have to do that..." he looked down at her, giving him her trademark 'really' look. He deflated. "Fine, but make it quick."

She nodded, and quickly turns to her chest she kept in the room, and soon, she returned with some of her cloths and bandages, some water in a bowl, and some gauze. She proceeded to begin cleaning out the wound with the cloth and water, rubbing the accumulated dirt and grime that had lodged itself in there.

It hurt a surprising amount, and Ezylryb quickly decided to talk about something, to keep his mind off the discomfort.

"How's Kludd?" he asked, a little gruffly to mask the sound of pain in his voice.

"Better than dead," Alice replied, keeping her eyes on the wound, "But nothing really new. Comatose, I'm sorry to say."

Lyze sighed. He had expected as much, yet it was still depressing to actually hear it.

The pain began to subside, as Alice expertly applied the gauze and small bandage, sealing and sterilizing the wound. "All done!" she said, with an air of accomplishment.

Ezylryb didn't hear, or if he did, he didn't register. "I feel sorry for the lad, Alice."

Alice nodded. "He can't feel much pain where he's at, though," she reminded him.

"Not just like that, though," the battle-scarred owl, replied, "Mentally. He reminds me so much of Surtr, before he became corrupted. Injuries changed him and look what had become of him...I'm afraid Kludd may go the same way."

Alice's expression turned serious, she had not lived long at the tree, but she had read quite a lot about the famous Battle of the Ice Claws, namely how Lyze severed the Sooty Owl's beak and losing his talon in return. She dared not brought it up when talking to the owl, as it must have held some bad memories.

"Kludd is strong, both physically and mentally," Alice consoled, "At least, from what I saw from his scars and wounds when I patched him up."

"I know that, Alice," Ezylryb sighed, "But...I just don't know what will become of the lad when... if he ever wakes up."

"Kludd won't follow the same path as Metalbeak," Alice smiled, "He has something that Metalbeak didn't. He has you."

She stood up, pressing her body against his. She was warm in the cold air. "Don't doubt your own abilities, Lyze," she whispered, leaning her face against his.

"Well, I suppose you could be right..." he replied, his head full of the scent of medicine, and the position they were in…

Then, before his mind could even register it was happening, she leaned forward and placed a kiss on his beak. It was quick and effortless, a gentle, calming embrace of beaks...and she didn't taste like medicine.

* * *

Kludd stood there in major disbelief as he faced the Sooty Owl that was perched on the white branch, unable to accept the fact that he was face to face with his old master, Metalbeak...or Surtr, as the older owl corrected.

The scarred barn owl started to shake his head, "It can't be...it simply can't..."

"Now, Kludd..." The Sooty Owl began, "I know you are confused right now..."

"Confused?" Kludd exclaimed, as he let out a high-pitched laugh, before snarling, "Confused doesn't even cover it! I mean...you're dead! My-my brother killed you!"

"Yes. Not my finest hour, I must admit." Surtr admitted, "But here I am..."

"But if you are here..." Kludd said, before realizing what this meant, "Does that mean...I'm...I'm...dead?"

Surtr let out a sigh, as he looked at him with a sympathetic glance, "Well, that strongly depends on you."

"What do you mean?" Kludd asked, a bad feeling rising in his gizzard, as another question arised "Where are we?"

"The Peninsula of the Spirit Woods." The Sooty Owl answered simply, "A good distance northwest of Ga'Hoole."

"Spirit Woods?" The scarred Tyto asked, never hearing of a such a place in his life.

"It is a forest, much like Ambala and Tyto...but it is home to owls who lives had ended, but are bound to this world for they have unfinished business to attend to..." Surtr explained.

"Wait, by owls who lives had ended, you mean...scrooms?" The young owl questioned.

The black owl nodded, "Yes. These woods act as a place for lost souls to gather, to seek solace, as they await their judgement and to ascend to Glaumora or be dragged down to Hagsmire..."

"Wait. Then what am I doing here?" Kludd asked, "I mean, the last I checked, I was back at the cliffs overlooking Hagsfiend's Sea..."

"Don't worry, lad. You are, what some owls would call, an 'out-of-body' experience... your actual body is resting back in Ga'Hoole. Lyze and the others made sure of that." Surtr reassured, a bit of a chuckle rising in his throat.

Kludd looked at him oddly, how could he be laughing? He's dead...the young Tyto failed to see anything so humorous about being ripped away from everyone you loved and the world you know. Many questions riddled his mind, and given how there weren't anyone around except for his dead master, he had to go to him.

"Sir...I mean no disrespect...but why am I here?!" Kludd demanded, "Am I dead or not?!"

Surtr looked at the young Tyto, not with anger or annoyance...but with pride, "The reason you are here...is because you had done good tonight...made both the Guardians and the Pure Ones proud. So good that the great owl up there had taken notice..."

Kludd looked up to see what he was referring to, but saw nothing to his confusion, before dumbly realizing that Surtr meant only one owl...Glaux. But despite this realization, he was beyond confused, "I...I don't think I understand...I didn't do anything that great..."

"That is where I beg to differ, lad." Surtr smiled, "Kludd...you may had done many horrible things. There's nothing that can change that or be undone...but in this night, you had done everything within your power to make up for it...and in that sense, you had become a better owl."

The scarred Tyto's heart suddenly began to hurt as his guilt returned...how can he just say that he became a better owl? How can Glaux himself see that he changed? He couldn't believe it... "But sir...I got Grimble killed, I moon-blinked my sister, I possibly ruined hundreds of lives because of my own jealousy and greed!"

"I said you became a better owl, not that you are perfect." The Sooty Owl chuckled, but then continued in a somber tone, "But I have yet to meet an owl who is. All that matter is that you learn what was truly important...you learned to put your friends and family first and above all...and you became the selfless, kind owl that I am proud to call soldier. The kind of owl that Soren always wanted for a brother."

"You mean the kind of brother Soren was..." Kludd whispered, as he felt tears threatening his eyes. He felt embarrassed that he was starting to cry in front of his master...but he felt no ridicule radiating from him...in fact, he felt that the Sooty Owl wanted him to let his tears drop, and his feelings grew true as he suddenly felt a wing on his shoulder. It needn't a glance to know that it was Surtr, who had managed to land softly aside him. Kludd let out a shaking sob as he continued, "All those years, I was so jealous of him. I should have been proud of him...I am proud of him. I love my brother..." The scarred Tyto's tears trickled down his cheeks as he let out another sob.

"There, there...I know you regret your decisions...I know I regretted mine." Surtr tried to soothe, as he remembered all the awful things he done, "But if you don't put them behind you...when will you? Because things happen for a reason...and believe it or not, you trying to push Soren off that branch were one of the greatest things you had ever done. Because of you, Soren went on to become of them Guardians, befriends a group of the most annoyingly loyal owls, found love, fulfilling his lifelong dream, and you Kludd...you became the heir that I could never have..."

"You left out the part where I was kicked off the throne and got your crown destroyed." Kludd muttered, his drops of sadness hitting the branch they stood on.

"Those things do not matter." The Sooty Owl answered gruffly, as to hint that he was missing the point, "In fact, it were those trivial artifacts that led to my downfall, especially that wretched mask and the name 'Metalbeak'." Surtr spat the name as if it was a curse, "Because of that name, I had lost sight of what was truly important...and when I finally cleared the smoke from my eyes...I was dead. The point I am trying to state here is that I failed to learn from my mistakes...but you didn't, and that what sets you apart from me..."

Kludd looked up at Surtr, his wet eyes drying. Those words...they were true, the truest words he had ever heard that Sooty Owl said. He and Surtr became prey for the same darkness brought upon by the name Metalbeak, his by jealously, the Sooty Owl's by vengeance. Surtr was unable to escape his darkness, and he met his end at the talons of his brother, who merely did it for the sake of the Guardians and in blind anger from the thought of him dead...as for him...it was a long and awful struggle, fraught with despair and agony, blind to what it was he almost become...but he had pull free of his darkness...or did it ever really had a chance of claiming him. He didn't know, and surely didn't want to find out...but only one question, as many others disappeared, lingered in his mind...

"So...what will become of me?" Kludd asked, deeply concerned that he was going to have to wander this eerie and ominous place without end...

"That question...is best clarified by an old friend of mine," Surtr explained, as he turned around on their branch, as if he was expecting someone...

"Who?" The barn owl questioned, mystified, as he about-face to see why the Sooty Owl did what he did...but his question was about to be answered, as a shadow came into the distance through the woods...

* * *

It was only a minute ago when the tears had stop falling from her eyes, her eyes becoming slightly bagged from all the tears that had been shed that night. The good news was that she was no longer phasing in and out of reality, for her broken heart had only mended partially due to the letter that was at her knees still, spots of dampness varying over the old parchment. It certainly helped that Soren was there comforting her...but...there was only one owl in all this pit of perpetual agony that could bring her out of it...sure, it seemed cliché, but she needed Kludd...as much as he needed her...

Fortunately, the power of coincidence happened to be thinking the same thing as Soren's mother, Marella, came out of the hollow, with her mate, Noctus, weakly limping out with her...Soren could only frown as he saw the eyes of his father...fraught with regret and deprived of any joy, making it very apparent that their efforts to stir their loved one awake bore no fruit.

"Da...Ma..." Was all Soren could say as the two approached them, unable to think of anything to say that could make anything better.

"It's alright, dear..." Marella tried to reassure with a straight face, "Your father...just needs some rest...he had a long night...maybe it's best that...you two try..."

Soren nodded as he then turn to Nyra, as he asked, "Nyra...I know you are probably not feeling your best right now...so...if you want, I can..."

"No." The white barn owl interrupted, "Ezylryb was right...Kludd needs me now more than ever...he needs _both_ of us..." As she turned to face Soren, her eyes (to the young Tyto's surprise) much more clearer than he had ever seen them before, as she slowly risen to her feet, and with a quick glance towards the two adults, she gave a nod to her love's brother, no longer holding any hate at all towards him. The two barn owls then turned to the hollow and enter it, leaving the two parents in the infirmary...

Soren and Nyra both withheld their gasps as they saw the still inanimate body of Kludd, as like the couple before them, they approached him slowly, even though they could make as much sounds as they want for it would not wake him. But, nonetheless, they were soon both standing over him, like roiling clouds, filled with such turmulous emotions, yet unable to release anything that would ease them.

No words were exchanged; for once more they were both speechless. No matter how many times they tried, they could not formulate the right words that could convey how much the owl in front of them mean to them...hagsmire, they couldn't even think of who would go first...the brother or the love of his life? Luckily, this question did not take much thought, as Soren stepped forth, and after casting a side glance stating that he would go first towards Nyra.

The female could not help but agree. It was him that knew Kludd longer than she could ever had known him, and who knows...if he had saved him once...he could do it again.

Soren, hoping that what he said next could possibly bring his brother out of this dark void he was trapped in, began...

"Kludd. It's me, Soren. It's your brother Soren. And Nyra is here, too..."

No response, as expected, came from the scarred Tyto.

With a sigh, he continued, "Who would have thought that it would be you that is in this position? I mean, one moment you were about ready to kill me, and the next you are laying your life on the line to give us time to escape…and the fact that you…risked your life to save me." Soren paused with a heavy sigh as he began to feel the despair of his situation affecting him full force.

"You know, Kludd…I would trade places with you, I wish it were me that were lying in your place. It's not fair that you had to suffer all your life while I…" He couldn't finish as he choked down a sob.

"Soren…" Nyra try to soothe with undying sympathy, but even her heart was feeling his pain. She wasn't even for certain if Kludd could hear them, but even if he could, he would have no comprehension of his surroundings…coma or not, he was practically dead.

"There are so many things I wished I could have done differently to prevent this from happening. But I know that if I did that, we would have never found that something that made our lives worth living…I would have never met Otulissa, Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight, as well as Lyze…you would have never met Nyra…and…we wouldn't had been stronger as brothers as we are now." Soren continued, as he wiped his wings against his eyes to prevent the tears from kicking up.

"I don't care what Maurice said…that light in you is too strong is be smothered by darkness…and within all skies of darkness, there's always a light. You proved it tonight when we fought valiantly against him…and how we flew in the greatest of coordination…I would give up both my talons and beak just so I could have the chance to fly with you once more…not as brothers in arms…but simply as brothers." Without realizing it, his tears had came back…but he didn't care, for his brother remained despondent, his voice growing shaky, "I…I just wish…that you can…wake up…so we can be brothers once more..." And in the next few seconds, his strong composure that he had been trying to keep up all night finally burst as he let out a shaky sob… "I just want you back…Kludd…I want my brother back…I'm sorry that I had failed you…" Filled with grief, Soren buried his face into his wings as he felt his pent-up anguish released.

Nyra's heart nearly broke at this sad sight…she was the only owlet in her family, so she could not begin to comprehend what it was that he was feeling right now…but nonetheless, it was heart-wrenching. But she could not cry…not yet…if she were to do what she was about to do, she wanted to do it going strong.

In an attempt to quail the sorrows of the brother of her love, she raised her left wing and slowly placed it on Soren's shoulder, slightly shaking for she had never really done this for another before and in the fear that he could react violently (although she found such a thought absurd, given his nature). Fortunately, he did not react as such…in fact; it was as if Nyra's touch had actually brought some sort of peace to the owl as his sobs became silent. Feeling the need to reassure him, she stated,

"Soren…Kludd had been able to live this long because of you…it was his hate and love for you that pushed him forward…I do not know much about siblings…but he is lucky to have you for a brother…and for that, I am grateful…"

The young brother lowered his wings as he looked at Nyra, as he again saw her eyes…aside from the fact that they were a bluish-green, they possessed quite an amount of clarity…and even more shocking, those eyes were sympathetic, loving even…something he never thought to see in a Pure One. But hey, who was he to look a gift owl in the beak? It was nice to know that someone at least knew his pain, even though their relation to Kludd are two completely different matters.

Soren let out one more sniffle as he then nodded, "Thanks…Nyra…" then suddenly, another thought came to his mind, something that was long overdue since earlier tonight, "I'm sorry about accusing you of making Kludd into…"

"Don't be." Nyra interrupted him, "You were right…for the most part. But I really did meant what I…"

"I know." Soren cut her off that time, not meaning to be rude, but to simply say, "But I'm not the one you should be reassuring…" As he then gestured to his comatose brother.

Nyra let out a sigh, as she knew what he was implying. Slightly nudging Soren aside so she could be up close to her beloved. Slowly, she surveyed the scarred Tyto's body, as his chest slowly rise and lower, looking at all the solvents and bandages that were applied to his owl, working to cure all but the burn mark on his face, which they probably assumed was incurable…but that didn't matter. She still loved him and considered him to be quite handsome, scars or not. And now…this was the time she finally say what she wanted to say to him ever since Metalbeak died and he became leader…

"Hello, Kludd…" Nyra began simply, "It's me…Nyra. I am not for certain if you can hear me wherever it is you're at, and I don't know if what I'll say will bring you out of it…but I have to do it nonetheless…" Nyra paused as she took a deep breath, "When I first saw you that day in St. Aegolius, I knew from that moment that you were meant for great things…you were strong, disciplined, and the most loyal owl I had ever met…but I never knew I would have developed feelings for you back then…and when Surtr died and you disappeared…" Soren gave an involuntary flinch as he was responsible for both of those events, "I was heartbroken…I thought I would be the only one left in this world…and it made me sick to my gizzard of having to live with that fact in my mind…but then…"

The white Tyto blinked, as a few tears fell from her eyes, "You came back. Not only, you came back with Metalbeak's helm…and in that moment, I felt something…something I couldn't explain until now. You gave me back hope. Hope that I could actually be able to live again. Then I felt something else…a feeling that grew more and more as the year passed by, as I saw you become a great leader as both Surtr and Metalbeak had become when he was made king…"

Nyra took in a deep breath. This was it, the moment she been anticipating…sure, she had pictured it quite differently, but that did not matter. All that did matter was here…and now.

"I love you, Kludd." She confessed simply, "I love you more than anything in this world." She paused, as she started to recall what she had said to Surtr when they became mates… "All my life, I have never felt so strongly about anyone…and when Surtr died, you were there for me…you always were…I don't care if you're not a Pure One anymore or a Guardian …all I care about is being with you…forever and always…I want to be your mate."

Soren immediately looked at her in shock. He had never once heard of a female proposing to a male before…but then again, Nyra wasn't an ordinary female.

But as the white Tyto finished her confession, she had expected that her proposal, given how much she meant what she said, would actually stir Kludd from his coma…but there was nothing, he was quiet and still.

Instantly did Nyra's resolve shattered along with her heart…nothing she said had worked…she knew Alice said it wasn't guaranteed to work…but it changed not that she had prayed, _begged_ even, that it would work…but now…she was truly alone, and no company, even that of her beloved's family, would change that.

Then in a fluid motion, she instantly dropped over Kludd's body as she let out the most anguished cry that her heart could muster. She buried her face into his chest, wrapping her wings around his slightly shorter frame, as she whimpered, "Please…come back…I love you, Kludd…I love you…"

The one who had the misfortune to witness this scene was Soren…he wanted to ease her pain…but how could he if he wanted the same thing as she does? Tears leaked from his eyes as well, as he let out a silent sob. This was truly a cruel world they lived in…in one night, not only had he lost his brother and Nyra lost the love of her life…but their hearts along with him…

* * *

Kludd looked in anticipation along side Surtr as he saw something emerged from the mist…a form of…another owl? Not only that, as the owl then landed on a branch in front of them, but it was a Barn Owl, much like his family and Nyra.

But the thing was…he never once saw this owl in his life. The mysterious owl looked much similar to his father, except smaller in frame, and the lower half and the tips of the owl's wings were white…and the eyes…they were a bluish-green, reminding him greatly of a certain owl he knew.

He wanted to address him, but the mysterious figure beat him to it, as it said in a masculine voice, (**his voice is Matt McKenzie, who played Auron in Final Fantasy X**), "So, this is the boy you had been telling me so much about, eh, Surtr?"

The scarred Tyto leapt in surprise, he knew Metalbeak?! He quickly turn to his once-leader to his right, who in turn, replied, "Indeed, he is, my old friend."

"_Old friend?!_" Kludd thought in shock, he had never once saw this owl in his life, nor did Metalbeak ever mention him…but then, as common sense came to him, he realized that if he was here…then he must have perished like Surtr and possibly him. But who exactly was he?!

Feeling the urge to know, Kludd asked the Sooty Owl, "Surtr, sir…who is this owl?"

However, instead of the ebony-feathered owl answering, the Tyto Alba chuckled, "Oh, come now, Kludd, you should have a good idea of who I am, you do happen to have an infatuation with my daughter, you know."

"Daughter?" Kludd repeated in confusion, as he looked at the older Barn Owl…but then suddenly it hit him like a lightning bolt…he did have her eyes…and those white blotches on his body do resemble that of what his…or his master's…soldiers have when they bleached their feathers…but still, his shock was great… "Wait…you're…Nyra's…father?"

The Tyto smirked as he then answered, "Indeed, Lucius Canner, first lieutenant of the Pure Ones Regiment, second-in-command to General Surtr, and father of Nyra Canner, at your service."

The shock did not fade off of Kludd's face as he looked at the newcomer. Never in his time with Nyra as she ever mentioned her family, let alone her father, who was a member of the Pure Ones. But yet here he was, and he felt nervous, which was natural when a boy who likes a girl meets that girl's father.

But fortunately, to ease his shock a little, Lucius continued, "I can understand your shock, lad. Nyra took a lot after her mother, both looks and personalities wise...her eyes and fierce battle temperment, that was all me." He finished with a smirk.

Working up the courage that had greatly diminished from his battle against Skarmoris, he tried to ask, "I don't understand, though...why are you here? I mean, I never met you once in my life..."

"Yes...but you met my daughter, making my prescence all the more significant. I had been watching you for a while, my dear boy, seen everything you had done up since my girl first met you." Lucius confessed.

"Everything?" Kludd winced, as he felt a bit of shame and guilt.

Lucius only nodded, as if he sensed how tense he grew from his statement, "Yep. Every good...and _bad_, things you had done. But I must say, you ought to be the first Pure One I ever saw to had done all those things you had tonight."

"Well, yes...I must admit that it wasn't one of my best nights." Kludd nodded. Indeed, believing that your brother and love feared you as a monster, getting beaten around by Nix, unleashing all his anguish upon his family and friends, fighting Skarmoris, and later on, Deathbringer, while avoiding all those pesky lightnings, having a sword sent through your body, and leaving the Earth without a proper good-bye to his loved ones or an 'I love you' to Nyra...it was safe to say that tonight didn't really qualified as a good night.

"Indeed." Lucius agreed, "But in the end, you had performed a act of ultimate sacrifice...you looked past all your hate and jealously and found light and even though you would die, you took that attack from that demon to save your brother. That is proof enough that your true side showed through...you are a great owl, Kludd, a truly great owl."

"But what difference does that make now?!" Kludd blurted out, forgetting who it was he was talking to, "I'm dead, aren't I? The point of all this was to make me feel better before I get sent to where I deserve to go? I appreciate it from you two, make no mistakes, but I doubt there's no good side about being damned to..."

"Kludd, you got it all wrong." Surtr interrupted him, "Glaux brought you here for a reason..."

"What reason though?" The barn owl exclaimed, growing more frustrated, "Damn it, am I dead or am I not?"

"It is like Surtr said before..." Lucius answered for him once more, "That strongly depends on you..." Kludd turn to the older Barn Owl, remembering those words, "You see...the big owl up there had offered you a choice..."

"Choice?" Kludd repeated, raising his brow.

Lucius nodded, "Yes...Glaux had forgiven you for all your crimes, and even applauded your efforts to make amends. That's why you have two alternatives...you can choose to remain here and ascend to Glaumora, with a clean slate and live the rest of eternity in peace alongside him...or you can return back to Earth, and return to your loved ones."

This choice left the barn owl quite speechless...it was the ultimate ultimatum...to leave the world he knew to go up to the famed paradise where many owls had sought in their wildest dreams and finally be at peace. To even be offered a chance at Glaumora was an honor in itself and to meet Glaux himself was something anyone who believe in him would die to have a chance to do so...but what of everything he had now? If he left this world, he would leave his entire family broken-hearted...and Nyra...his death would destroy her, sending her into a world of despair...but what would the world even accept him, despite professing to be changed of heart? This decision was beyond all reasons hard to make...to die and live in peace or live to see his family and suffer the ridicule of the world who loathed him...Kludd could only growl in frustration as he knew not what to choose...

"_I love you, Kludd, as much as a mother could love all her children as possible._"

"Mother?" Kludd jumped as he heard his mother's voice.

"_I j-just want to say…I was a-always proud…of you. No matter…what you did…I was always…proud to call you…my son._"

"Da?" The scarred Tyto questioned as he began looking around, unaware of the slight smirks that were appearing on Lucius and Surtr's beaks. The young lad was confused as to why he was hearing his parents' voices right now...was he losing his mind? And what of his father's voice? He sounded...sad...heart-broken... Kludd could only frown in further confusion...when suddenly, he heard a even more familiar voice...

"_I just want you back…Kludd…I want my brother back..._"

"Soren?" Kludd exclaimed, as he could sense the sadness in his voice...how could he consider leaving him? He was his brother who needed him...not only him, but Eglantine as well, they both needed him as much as he needed them. He wanted the chance to finally be the brother they deserved, like they were before the entire incident had began...but this time, he would do it right, he didn't care if he had to listen to those tales another seven hundred times, because now they feel as real as they should have felt a year ago...but then there was one more voice...a voice that made his heart soar...

"_I love you, Kludd. I love you more than anything in this world. All my life, I have never felt so strongly about anyone…and when Surtr died, you were there for me…you always were…I don't care if you're not a Pure One anymore or a Guardian …all I care about is being with you…forever and always…_"

"Nyra..." Kludd whispered, as he felt a tear to his eyes...hearing her voice was all he needed to hear...to finally decide what he will do with his life...

The young Tyto turned to Lucius and then to Surtr, as they were expecting his decision, and not caring if he had tears in his eyes, he said, "I have to go back..."

"Are you sure, lad?" Surtr asked, even though he seem to know the answer.

"I never got to tell Nyra that I love her...I want to go back..." Kludd stated with absolute.

Lucius smiled as he flew upon the two's branch and placed a wing on his shoulder, "I'm proud of your loyalty to my daughter...but are you for certain? This path you are about to take will not be easy, and will be fraught with trials, and I cannot tell for certain what your future will be like...are you sure you can handle it?"

"I don't care. All I know is that with my brother, her, and the legends behind my wings, I can take it. I have never been so sure in my entire life." The scarred Tyto answered, his heart soaring higher and higher, as if it knew no pain.

Surtr and Lucius exchanged looks that spoke of pride, as Surtr said, "Excellent choice, lad. I must admit that it will be sad to see you go...but I know you will continue to do me proud. You may not be a Pure One anymore...but I know in my gizzard and bone that you will make a damn fine Guardian."

Kludd gave a smile at his reassuring words, "Thank you, sir."

"Also...be sure to take great care of Nyra, lad." He continued, "A beautiful female like her do not come every blue moon."

"Indeed." Lucius agreed, as he adopted a stern look, "And if you dare hurt her in any way possible after this, I will not hestitate to haunt you forevermore..."

Normally, the young Tyto would be intimidated...but he just nodded, "You both have my word...I will protect her with my life."

The older Tyto Alba's expression returned to a jovial one, "You know, you are all right, Nyra is lucky to still have someone in her life."

"Yes..." Surtr agreed, as he looked at the barn owl. He knew the moment he saw him that he was destined for great things. All though he knew not what it was, nor care, as he was under the persona Metalbeak, but now...he was now living his dream...to be with the owl he loved and possibly starting a family. It brought tears to his eyes that a boy he had trained to carry his legacy is now ready to begin his life anew. He may have failed to do this himself...but it was not too late for him...and he could not be happier.

"So..." Kludd began as he was about to spread his wings to fly, "Where do I go from here?"

"Quite simple, really, all you got to do is fly...fly with all your might." Lucius advised, "Just focus on that and you will be back before you can say 'roasted vole!'"

"Okay." Kludd nodded, as he then said, "Thank you both very much...for everything." As he then flapped his wings to get airborne as he began flying off, "I will do both you proud!" He shouted back.

"There's no doubt in my mind you will, lad! No doubts at all!" Surtr yelled in reply.

"Yes, Kludd, fly! Fly as far as the sky's is the limit! Fly!" Lucius encouraged as Kludd began to fade off into the distance...

Soon after Kludd had flown out of hearing distance, the two owls that he left stood there on the branch, both a bit sad that their friend had to leave, but more happy that he chose life, a decision they were never given. Lucius could only smile, as he then felt something special in his gizzard...somehow knowing what that feeling was, he turned to his long-time friend:

"Well, sir, my work here is done. It is time for me to join him..." Lucius said with a heavy heart.

"I know, Lucius...I just want to say how proud I was to call you my friend and comrade." Surtr nodded, as he felt tears strike his eyes.

"Aren't you coming?" The barn owl asked, disappointment in his voice.

"Sorry, Lucius, not yet...I still have a thing or two to do before I go." The Sooty Owl explained.

"I see...well, I hope I'll see you soon." Lucius whispered, as he spread his wings.

"You will. Be sure to send Miranda my regards and tell her that her daughter is in good wings." Surtr exclaimed, keeping his voice strong, despite how upset he was.

Lucius gave a nod and one last smile as he flew off in the opposite direction of where Kludd had went, his body soon disappearing as he did, for he was now in a better place.

Surtr could not help but shed a few silent tears of saying goodbye to his friend once more...but he knew deep inside that he would see him again and that they will be together once more...but for now...there were a few more amends he had to make...namely one as an owl landed behind him, just as confused as Kludd was a few minutes ago. But the Sooty Owl only smiled as he then said, with the greatest of hidden joy in his heart... "It is nice to see you again..._son_..."

Kludd gave one last glance back as he continued forward, flying as hard as he could through the trees, not caring at all if it seemed like he was flying in circles. All he was focused on was what his life is going to be like once he was back in his world...images flew through his minds as he pictured himself back with his family consisting of his father, Noctus, his mother, Marella, his nursemaid, Mrs. P, his little sister, Eglantine, and more importantly, his brother Soren. Even more so, he pictured flying alongside him and his friends, enjoying life, ignorant of all evil in the world. The thought of being trained by the legendary Lyze of Keil, who was once his enemy, now his teacher, to become a great Guardian...and Nyra...he will finally fulfill that promise he made to her back when he was Metalbeak...to make her his queen...no...his mate, his beloved...

"_I want you to be my mate..._"

The scarred Tyto smiled at that beautiful voice, as he answered deep in his mind, "_Yes...yes, Nyra, I will. Forever and always._" Then, with the word 'Fly' echoing in his mind from her deceased father, he flew as hard and fast as he can, completely unaware of a light that was enveloping him...for the first time in a long time, he finally felt something good in his heart and his gizzard...and he was going to cherish it forever... "_Yes...yes...yes..._"

* * *

Nyra was out of tune with the universe once more, as she buried her beak into Kludd's chest, letting out all her tears of anguish, as they spill all over him., unaware of how broken Soren was, as he continued to silently sob behind her, wanting the same thing as she did. She wanted him back so bad...she would give anything to have him embrace her...to hold her...to have his sweet, rugged voice grace her ear slits once more...

"Yes."

Nyra immediately froze, alongside Soren, who snapped out of his own anguish as they both heard the three-letter word in the voice of someone they thought was long gone. At first they thought they were both hearing things...but suddenly, Nyra felt the chest her head was lying on move, as she lifted her head and turned towards towards her beloved's face, whose peaceful expression began to wince as the owl began to awaken. Nyra and Soren gaped, unable to move, watching as the scarred Tyto began to slowly rise up, but flinching as the pain of his healing wounds were returning, but that did not matter. And, like it was a miracle sent by Glaux, Kludd opened his eyes, irises the color of the darkest brown, and when he saw his beloved, staring at him in great shock, he only smiled...

"I will be your mate."

In one fluid moment, Nyra let out a little squeak as she tightly embraced the scarred Tyto, letting out even more tears as a sob or two escape her beak, and then suddenly planting her beak onto Kludd's, giving him a far stronger kiss than the one she did back at the Pillar of Supremacy, catching the barn owl off guard...but hey, he was not complaining as he begun to savor it. Nyra pulled away as she returned to embracing him, whimpering...

"Kludd...oh Glaux...I thought...I thought..."

"Shh..." Kludd whispered, as he ran his left wing along her back, grunting a little as she was hugging him tightly, but he didn't care. He just whispered, "I would never leave you...never..."

"Brother..."

Kludd and Nyra both turned towards the origin of that voice, which was Soren, whose eyes were just as filled with tears of utter joy, as his beak turn into a watery smile. Knowing what he had to do, he gave a look to Nyra, who in turn, letting out a few tears, gave a nod in understanding as she step back, giving Soren room as the younger brother wrapped his wings around him, just as tightly as his lover did, but he still didn't give a damn for he was just as happy to be back...

"Kludd...you came back...you actually came back..." Soren whimpered as he nuzzled him.

"Of course I did..." The scarred Tyto smirked, "Like I said, brothers always look after each other...no matter what..."

Soren let out another wail of joy...his brother was back, not only that, but for the better good...maybe the world isn't as cruel as he thought it to be...it brought him back despite all the awful things he done, but that did not matter...he could not wait to see the looks on his family's faces when they see Kludd awake and well...

"Kludd?"

Soren, Nyra, and Kludd all turned to the entrance of the hollow, where not only Noctus and Marella stood, but as well as Digger, Gylfie, Twilight, along with Eglantine and Mrs. P, all of their expressions matching that of shock...and then happiness spreading across their faces...

"Ma...Da..." Kludd began, as he never felt such joy in seeing his parents once more.

The two elder Barn Owls' eyes began to water, as Marella started to break into tears of happiness, while Noctus just smiled, all his regrets and guilt fading away at the sight of his son...no, his eldest son, smiling back at him. It was as if Glaux had forgiven him for what he had done to his son...and was giving him a second chance in making things right with him.

They both wanted to express their newfound joy in words...but fortunately, their daughter, who was beyond happy to see her big brother again, beated them to it, as she cheered, "KLUDD!", hopping out of her nursemaid's coils and quickly waddling towards and promptly leaping onto him, hugging him as best as she could with her short stubby wings, "I knew you would come back! I always knew!"

"Eglantine..." Kludd smiled, as his eyes grew misty.

"Oh, Kludd, dear, it is so great to hear your voice again!" Mrs. P cried out, just as overjoyed as the others.

"We never gave up hope; we knew you would wake up!" Digger followed, speaking for both him and Gylfie, who was just happy beyond words.

"Well, slap me up and hand me to mamma, the lad made it...not that I doubt he would." Twilight boasted, trying to hide his merriment as well.

Kludd was overwhelmed as everyone was in the small hollow, Twilight barely fitting in, all of them happy to see him once more. Especially his brother, his sister, and his beloved, who was right next to him, gazing at him with a look of pure love and happiness. He knew the risks and hardships that would come with returning to this world, as he was still considered a monster by many...but with family and friends like the ones that surrounded him...he dared not regret that decision for one moment...

Meanwhile, outside the hollow, watching the wonderful scene unfold, were two Whiskered Screech Owls, Ezylryb and Alice, both of them quite shocked but nonetheless glad that the boy they feared would never wake up...did.

"Well, what do you know...they managed to wake him up..." Alice smiled, "...And so much for only two in a hollow at a time." She quipped.

"Leave them be, Alice. The boy meant a lot to them. It's only natural that they surround him and express their joys." Ezylryb slightly chuckled.

"I know." Alice sighed, "But eventually, I gotta get in there and do a check-up on him. But I guess it can wait."

Ezylryb only nodded in agreement. Indeed, it can wait. He knew that he would have to fetch Boron and bring him to Kludd to show him that Kludd had indeed changed, there was no mistake about that...but as he witness the scene of his apprentice embracing his brother once more, he could not help but look upward, as he felt in his gizzard that a certain someone had something to do with this. In his mind, he simply thanked:

"_Thanks, Surtr...old friend._"

* * *

**A/N: *Smirks* This was indeed a great chapter if I do say so myself. Just so you know, there is one more chapter after this, and this fic will officially be completed. I got my inspiration for the 'spirit journey' sequences from One Tree Hill, in season 4, episode 10, Songs To Live And Die By, where Lucas nearly died and met Keith again, and the final season, episode 11, Danny Boy, where Keith had a conversation with Dan before he died. I also brought to light Nyra's father, Lucius, and gave her family the name Canner, where I had a bit of inspiration from Ghost Whisperer when Lucius...went to the other side. All I shall say is this...this chapter made me feel a bit sad at points, especially the last scene where Lucius and Surtr parted (btw, I hope you know who Surtr was refering to by 'son'). I hope I did all you guys proud in this chapter, and are relieved that I didn't make Kludd choose the other alternative. I know you saw it coming, but hey...I could have. XD. Anyways, I just want to say, READ AND REVIEW! (And the last chapter will be coming up shortly...hopefully).**

"_It's a special thing.. saying 'I love you' to people you love. Because you never know when you'll lose them, or when they'll lose you."_

-_Keith Scott, One Tree Hill Season 4, Episode 10, Songs To Live And Die By_

_**Artworks stuff is appreciated, deeply appreciated.**_


	25. Brotherhood

**A/N: Okay, everyone…this is it…little over half a year ago, I had gotten an account on this site and five days later started this awesome story. Those seven months I had spent trying to complete this, while completing a few other oneshots and creating OCs for other to use, dueling writer's block, and left you guys waiting a whole month for these chapters…I got to say, I am impressed with how big and how loved this story had become. Let's give this wonderful fic a great ending, shall we?**

**I do not own Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole...if I did, this story would probably be its sequel.**

**bluecatcinema owns New Beginnings, Ruffled Feathers, Dark Feelings, and Worlds Apart.**

**Note: It is heavily recommended to read the abovementioned stories by bluecatcinema in order to understand parts of this story.**

**FeoranPride (a deviantartist) owns Nix, the grass owl, but TearfulFriend18 (Formerly Mic O'Malley) used it, so he deserved to be mentioned.**

**I own Samuel, the snowy owl, Skarmoris, the Sulawesi Masked Owl, and Biggs and Wedge, the barn owls, Alice, the Whiskered Screech Owl, LaRoche, the Elf Owl, and Pip, the Little Owl, as well as Harris Hawk the Red-Tailed Hawk, and Fatal the Golden Eagle, Zephyr the Barn Owl, Maurice the Sulawesi Masked Owl, as well as Nyra's parents, Solidor, another snowy owl. I also claim ownership of the Deathbringer, the hagsfiend.**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Five: Brotherhood

The sun was beginning to rise as Madame Plonk's goodlight song rang throughout the hollows, bidding all its denizens a sweet and pleasant dream for the light. Normally, her music was beautiful enough alone that it could lull anyone to sleep…but there were still a group of owls that were still awake…and for a good reason as well.

Kludd could not help but enjoy the company of his family, as well as the embrace of his little sister, who was nuzzling his abdomen. It was only about a half hour ago that he had finally broke free of his comatose state, only to be greeted with a warm embrace from his once-queen Nyra, along with his once-enemy and brother, Soren, and to receive a warm welcome from his family and the rest of the band. The half hour had been filled with telling him how frightened they were of losing him, as well as what had happened in the hours he had been out.

The scarred Tyto just smirked when he learned that Digger and Gylfie had finally accepted their feelings for each other and were finally in a relationship, and that Twilight actually began to pursue a relationship with Strix. He, along with the band, were all surprised but were enthralled when Soren told him of how he proposed to Otulissa and how she had said yes…and him deciding to hold their wedding a year later when Soren became of age for the optimal mating season. Kludd couldn't believe how much he had missed while he was in his state, but could not help but be happy…no, proud of his brother, unlike back at the Peaks, where he just hid his happiness. But in all this joy, he had realized the absence of one owl, an owl who he had owed great thanks and his life to…

"Where's Ezylryb?" Kludd asked, "He should be here as well."

"Hmm, he's probably with Alice." Soren suggested, still relishing the fact that his brother was alive, "In fact, I should go fetch him…"

"That won't be necessary, lad." A gruff voice chuckled.

The entire hollow jumped (Twilight hitting his head on the ceiling of the hollow), as they looked to the entrance of the hollow to find Ezylryb, with his trademark cocky grin on his beak…

"Sir…" Kludd began, not sure what to say.

Ezylryb approached the young lad and placed his starboard wing on the lad's shoulder, looking at him with a glance that spoke more than words. "You have no idea how glad I am to see you are up and about."

"Well, I wouldn't say 'about'." The scarred Tyto added, "It kinda hurts to move right now."

"Well, that's quite understandable."

The others quickly gazed at the entrance once more to see Alice, as she tried to inch her way in, given how crowded the hollow had become, "You were stabbed in the left part of your abdomen, nearly missing your heart and vital organs, not to mention you were wounded in many places. Due to that, you probably won't be flying for a few weeks."

"I see." Kludd replied, before lightly chuckling, "Well, at least flying is the last thing on my mind right now."

"Good." Ezylryb said, before adopting a stern look, "Because there are some other matters that must be attended to. Namely the fact that you are still considered a Pure One to them."

Kludd's expression immediately turned serious as the old owl said that; of course he of all owls would have forgotten that, he was in the Great Ga'Hoole Tree after all.

"But he isn't!" Noctus stepped up, defending his son, "He knew what he did was wrong, and he's willing to make up for it!"

"I know that, Noctus." Ezylryb nodded, "But I am not the one that needs convincing. The one Kludd has to talk to is the great owl himself…"

Soren was the next to speak, as he caught on what the Screech Owl was referring to, "Wait, you mean…"

"Yes, lad. In fact, while you were all having your reunion, I went and brought him to the infirmary to meet with him." The old owl explained.

"But, I don't understand, didn't you talk with him and the others?" Gylfie questioned, confused as to why the king himself would want to talk to the ex-king of the Pure Ones face to face.

"Yeah, I thought you said that you would take care of it!" Nyra reminded, a bit of annoyance shown in her beak.

"I did…but he insisted that he meets with the lad." Ezylryb defended, hiding his smirk at seeing Nyra back to her old self.

"That's right." Alice agreed, "In fact, he's waiting out there right now, so it would be best not to keep him waiting."

"Then why don't you bring him in?!" Twilight bellowed, before hitting his head on the ceiling again.

"Funny that you would ask that, Mr. Twilight."

Everyone suddenly jolted (Twilight hitting the ceiling for the third time, much to his chagrin) as at the entrance to the crowded hollow stood the tree's great monarch, in feathers of white, Boron, as he looked upon the group with an amused glance.

"Y-your majesty!" Everyone except the Screech Owls, Kludd and Nyra exclaimed.

"My apologies, but I was hoping to meet with the lad before it got any brighter." Boron apologized, "A king does need his rest, you know."

"Of course, sir." Ezylryb nodded in understanding, "I was just letting them know that you were coming before you came in."

"Still didn't change the fact that I hit my head three times." Twilight muttered, rubbing his head gingerly.

"Sorry to hear that, lad, but I am here strictly on business…namely to speak with the Tyto Alba they called Kludd." The snowy owl explained.

Kludd perked up when the snowy owl mentioned his name, and only gulped as he saw how much bigger he was compared to him. Why did Glaux have to gift them with the ability to swell up to twice their size when angered? (**Note: I am not kidding, they apparently can do that. Read the books if you don't believe me**) Nonetheless, he locked his brown eyes with his golden ones (only to shiver at the memories of a certain being that possessed eyes similar to those), waiting for him to say something.

"Before I continue, I would like to request that everyone vacate the room please." The elder owl requested.

"Of course, sir." Alice nodded before turning to everyone with an ordering glance, "Well, you heard the owl, step this way please."

Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight (who was a bit sheepish due to his outburst against Boron) gave each others unsure glances as they left the hollow, but not before giving a nod to Kludd.

Noctus and Marella were just as unsure, as they didn't want to leave their son's side so soon again, especially shortly after his awakening, but by the way the king was glancing at them, they had no choice but to comply. Marella gave a quiet 'come here' command to her daughter, who was hesitant at leaving her brother, but she complied, as she joined her mother as the group exited the hollow, soon followed by Mrs. P.

Soren, still a bit nervous being around Boron especially given what had transpired when they returned, was about to leave as well, along with Nyra (who, like Eglantine, was not happy at the thought of leaving Kludd), who didn't want to be around the leader of the group that loathed her entire existence…but Boron quickly added, "Except you two. I would prefer that you two stay in the hollow." The two barn owls shared looks of confusion as they returned to their original position near Kludd who was also puzzled by his request.

Ezylryb, seeing how everyone was accounted for, merely nodded to the three as he, along with Alice, who did the same, leaved the hollow, only Kludd, Soren, and Nyra left with the king, who stood solemnly silent. The three Tytos looked at each others quizzically, what could Boron possibly have to say to them? Was he here to punish him? To send them out? What purpose could he possibly have here right now?!

The questions were soon laid to rest as Boron began, "So…I take it that you are Kludd?"

Kludd, feeling slightly intimidated, answered, "In the feathers…what is it that you want?" He added, a bit curious.

"Kludd…" Soren scolded for his lack of manners in his address.

"No, it's alright, lad." Boron said with a wave of his wing, "…So I had heard from Lyze that you are no longer in command of the Pure Ones, despite your intentions of taking it back, and that you had fought Skarmoris by yourself…am I to assume that this is true?"

The scarred Tyto looked at him more confused, where was he going with this? "It is…although my brother joined me during the fight."

Boron gave a scrutinizing look as he took a step towards the three as to get a better view of him. It was habit that he, like other Guardians, examined others closely to see if they were telling the truth, and much to his surprise, his eyes showed no signs of deceit, confirming a part of what his old friend told him.

"Do you recall who I am, Kludd?" Boron asked.

Kludd gave a slight nod, "I have a pretty good idea. But why don't you clarify for me? I was never a stickler for names."

The snowy owl answered, "Very well, then. I am Boron, birthed in the Northern Kingdoms, king of the Great Ga'Hoole Tree on the Island of Hoole. Me and my mate, along with a select few, the Lyze of Keil included, decides the laws within the very tree you are resting in."

"I figured." Kludd merely chuckled…before quickly noticing how grim the king's expression turned, shutting him up.

"I had heard a great deal about you, Kludd Alba. You and Soren went branching one night without parental supervision, you pushed Soren off the branch, only to fall off yourself, endangered both his and your life, was taken by the St. Aeggies' patrols, was lulled into joining the Pure Ones' army by promise of power and recognition, inadvertently caused the death of a noble owl named Grimble, moon-blinked your younger sister…" Boron listed.

"Sir, Kludd is sorry for all of that!" Soren stepped up to defend him, "Please, if you should punish him, punish m-"

"Stand down, Soren." The snowy owl ordered coldly, prompting Soren to cower a bit, "As I was saying, you took part in the battle of St. Aegolius, attempted to murder your brother in the Beaks, resulting in that scar on your face." Kludd flinched, as he swore his scar hurt for a moment, "Then you have the audacity of reuniting with the Pure Ones and went on to become their leader. And a month or so later, you dare take a few of our own, and threaten their lives if Soren refused to settle this grudge you had against him, coming close to killing one of our own because of her interference…"

"Now wait a Glaux damn moment!" Nyra snarled, "All this happened a year ago! It is very pitiful to hold such a grudge against-"

"SILENCE!" Boron bellowed, growing peeved at the two's interruptions. Nyra wanted to say more, but Kludd merely gave her a look that told her to stand down, so she did so, still donning her glare. "Now, if I can continue without any _further_ interruption, I would like to finish what I have to say!" He cleared his throat as he composed himself, "Fortunately, that were your only notable transgressions…but they prompted your brother to break his oath as a Guardian for he had lied, a crime despite its good intentions." Soren let out a shameful sigh as he brought it up, "And then…four nights earlier, you have the gall to come here to our home, created a hole in our main hall's ceiling!" Nyra was about to justify that Kludd was blinded by hail when that occurred, but Kludd stopped her, "And put five of our own's lives at risk to reclaim a kingdom in which you have failed in doing so…and in the end…" The snowy owl added, his tone growing fierce, his eyes burning brightly.

Kludd just winced, this was it, Boron was going to give it to them good. He knew that death was beneath them, but he had a bad feeling in his gizzard that what he would say next will result badly for the three of them…

"You have saved us all."

The three barn owls looked up in surprise as Boron's stern expression softens to that of sympathy.

"Your…er…highness," Kludd stuttered, quite shocked by how calm he become, "I don't think I followed…"

"It is quite simple, lad." Boron explained, "Ezylryb had told me everything you had done in your adventure, of how you saved Digger from the coils of an unruly serpent, battled with those low-life hawks, and ultimately how you came face to face with Skarmoris. Despite all your past crimes, you had rid this world of an owl who intended on taking countless lives with his…what you call it: Cannabis Regime? That in its own right was a lofty task."

"But what does that changed?" The scarred barn owl questioned, "It doesn't change the fact that I had done very awful things to all of you. Forgiveness is possibly the last thing I could ask of any of you." Soren and Nyra looked at him with pity

"You are probably correct." The snowy owl nodded, "But that doesn't mean that you are not worthy of it."

Kludd looked up at the snowy owl, confused, what does he mean?

"The parliament and I had taken deliberation in our decision as to what was to be done with you and Nyra. Half of us wanted you out of the tree. The others wanted to give you a second chance. It was a stalemate, I must admit…but eventually we had reached a verdict."

"Which is?" Kludd asked, unable to bear the suspense, as well as Soren and Nyra, who was also afraid of the fact that she would be separated from Kludd…

Boron smirked, "Well, lad, as far as any of us is concerned, it was a selfish owl known as Metalbeak that had committed those crimes, not a barn owl named Kludd. And as I see you now, my boy, you are of no threat to anyone except those who would threaten your family. Therefore, I see no reason as to why you could not stay here, especially when your wounds had healed."

Soren and Kludd let out a gasp and shared looks of disbelief. Was he serious? Boron was going to let the once-king of their enemies stay here? This was almost like a dream come true. Kludd himself could not believe it as well…but a thought enters his mind, regarding the other owl next to him…

"Sir…I am afraid I don't know what to say…" Kludd began, but then he step forth (wincing in pain as his wounds still ached), casting a glance at his fiancé, "But what of Nyra? I am thankful for your willingness to forgive me…but I cannot stay here…not without her." Nyra gave a silent gasp. He was willing to give up being with his brother to be with her once more, even after what all that happened to him because of her?

The snowy owl looked at him with sympathy however, as he chuckled, "Well, Nyra is a complete different matter, for she had committed many more crimes than you had done in your time as king, including the deaths of some of our men." Nyra flinched that time, knowing that all of that was true, "…But Lyze came to tell me how she had shown acts of valor and kindness in your adventure as well. Although I cannot excuse some of her crimes, I also cannot excuse the change of heart she had shown in the past few nights…and I find it uncouth of me to keep two lovers apart because of such a silly grudge. So, taken that Nyra learn to live by the ways of the tree, and within temporary probationary capacity, which I taken won't be difficult," He cast a somewhat stern yet amused glance at Nyra…who surprisingly agreed as she saw where this was going, "I think that she can roost here along with you."

Kludd and Nyra let out gasps of joy as they embraced each other once more, connecting their beaks once more as they did so. Soren watched this scene in joy as he turned to the king and mouthed 'thank you' to the king, filled with complete satisfaction that not only he would have his brother, but Kludd would have his beloved as well.

The king only nodded in response. Little did these three knew that Boron had every intention of letting the two stay here the moment Ezylryb had told him everything, despite his preliminary doubts…but there was one more matter that must be accounted for…an idea that would sound crazy to many Guardians and those who feared the Pure Ones, but possibly a good idea if put into action.

Soon after Kludd finished his embrace with his love, he turned to Boron as he said, "Thank you so much, sir! I promise you that we will be model citizens, I swear!"

"Oh don't thank me yet, lad, for I have a very important question I like to ask of both of you…" The old monarch stated.

"A question?" Nyra asked, a bit curious, "What kind of question?"

"Another simple answer, really...you see, Ezylryb had made quite a few convincing arguments in our meeting, and given how you performed brillant acts of heroism tonight...I would like to extend you two the honor of training under the tree's tuleage as honorary Guardians..."

The three barn owls, mostly Kludd and Nyra, gaped at what he just say, as the two spoke in unison, "You want us to what?!"

"You want them to what?!" Soren screeched after them, himself surprised.

"You heard me correct." Boron smirked, amused by the ex-Pure Ones' faces, "Ezylryb would be honored to have you trained to become, as he quoted, 'the best damn Guardians there ever was'...

Kludd was still stupefied, "But...me? Nyra? Guardians?"

"Why not? You two aren't really Pure Ones anymore, and if you two were to become Guardians, it will do you well to clear both your slates of all the burden your past crimes had caused." Boron explained, but as he noticed the still shocked look on their beaks, he continued, "But it is not mandatory, however. I will not lie, the path to becoming a Guardian is difficult, even more so for owls of your upbringing. I will not coax or force you into anything that will make you uncomfortable and all...but I truly believe it will do you both some good. The choice lies with you, Kludd...are you willing to take to the sky with us?"

The scarred Tyto's expression was blank, unsure of what to make of the snowy owl's offer...he was once again faced with a big decision that could have a major impact on his life...of course it is not of a great magnitude as the decision to either live or die back in the place he was, but still, it was of great difficulty. He gave a glance at Soren and Nyra, who were also wondering what he would choose, but the scarred Tyto was more focused on his fiancé, as her expression seemed to say 'I would follow you no matter the decision you make', warming his heart that his love was loyal to him as he was to her...but it made his decision no easier, unfortunately. As he given it consideration, it reminded him greatly of when he chose to become the Pure Ones' leader a year or so back...like the king said, it could give him a chance to repair the damage he and Nyra caused, and possibly redeem themselves...but would the other owls even consider giving them the chance? He could already feel the hate and mistrust that would be all around him and Nyra, from the other owls who aren't as forgiving as the others, including that urchin named LaRoche. Kludd resisted grimacing thinking of that horrid little owl.

But then again...what did they have to lose? His family had forgiven him and her, Gylfie and the others had let them into their group they called 'The Chaw of Chaws', and surely Ezylryb and Soren will be there every step of the way...and if they were to become Guardians...they could possibly find peace in themselves, laying all their demons to rest for good...and given how the Pure Ones was practically no more without Skarmoris, this was a chance to start over anew.

That thought in mind, Kludd looked at the snowy owl with a smirk, now completely confident in his answer, as he knew what it was he going to do...with Nyra, Soren, and everyone else by their side, the answer that issued from his beak became as clear as the full moon...

* * *

'A long time ago, before the time of the Lyze of Keil and Metalbeak, there was an evil owl known as...the _Deathbringer_, an owl whose heart whose colors matched the blackest nights, and whose eyes matched that of pure ominous gold. The owl was truly powerful, as he killed many owls with only his own two claws, and had terrorized the owl kingdoms. He killed anyone who stand in his path, may he or she be a Guardian or a Pure One, a grown owl or a owlet, it mattered not, as the owl, with feathers of eternal night and an army of the strongest yet ruthless owls, continue his conquest for supreme power.'

'This had caught the attention of the Guardians, as the evil owl made his way from the south, and for the second time in owl history, two owls of the Pure Ones alliance, a king and his queen, betrayed by the ones they once called soldiers, sought help of their enemies to defeat this darkness. Their plead was answered by being accompanied by a band of owls, consisted of a leader, a navigator, a tracker, and a warrior, one of whom was his brother, whose hate had grown from jealously and the need to be recognized by their father, and a legendary hero. At first, their alliance was shaky, but with the power of teamwork and friendship, and the reminder of whom they were fighting for, they had prevailed over obstacles of dangerous bogs, troublesome bandits, and a ominous fog, all to confront this evil. However, this new partnership had changed nothing, as despite all their efforts, the combined forces' power was not enough to stop the Deathbringer, for he had expected their arrival, and by evil means, he had toyed with the king's emotions, to a point where he turned him against his friends and his brother, even his queen, and it seemed that all hope was lost, as the king suffered pain, not of his body, but of his heart...'

'Then, as if a miracle sent by Glaux himself, the king's heart saw what he was doing was wrong...and he had finally found what his heart had desired. With a new goal set into his gizzard, he along with his brother, stood against the evil monster while the others flew to bring their loved ones to safety. These two owls were special, as the younger owl, a noble warrior of the Guardians, had the speed of the hummingbird and the cunning of a fox while the older owl, once the bold leader of the Pure Ones, had the strength and leadership of an eagle, together, they were an unstoppable force. They went to battle with this horrid beast as this words echoed within their minds, words that bear great inspiration, "_It matters not whether you follow the path of light and order, or the path of darkness and dominance, it matters not whether you have the strength, the intelligence, or the courage, all that matters is that you follow your heart and dreams, as no matter how dark the path it leads you on, it will always guide you true._"

'With those words in mind, the two brothers took to the sky as they confronted the monster and his insidious powers, and as if the words gave them strength, they were able to hold their own against this beast. Angered by the two brother's meddling, the three owls fought a long and brutal fight as the three owls exchanged blow after blow, but with the teamwork of the duo, they have managed to defeat the _Deathbringer_, and brought peace to the owl kingdoms...however, their victory was short-lived, as the Deathbringer, still living despite all his wounds, summoned the last of his strength and charged his blade at the younger brother. Then in a flash, as an act of great sacrifice…the older brother took his sword and pushed the younger brother out of the way as he took the blade to his body and with a final blow, he killed the Deathbringer. The monster was slain, but the older brother suffered a mortal wound from that stab, and…'

"Should I stop?"

"What?!" A group of owlets screeched as Soren asked that question. They were all in the library, as the owlets (Eglantine included) were listening intently to a new story that Soren had been telling about their adventure.

"Come on, Mr. Soren, we want to know what happen next!" A Barred Owl named Pete, an owlet that was actually rescued by Allomere along with Eglantine to serve as a pawn in luring the Guardians to the fleck trap, chirped. He was a little fluff ball like Eglantine, a bit unruly sometimes, but innocent nonetheless.

"Oh, no, I wouldn't want to give you all daymares." Soren chuckled, amused by their wanting to know more.

"But, Mr. Soren, we want to know what happened next! Did the older brother survive?" Another owlet questioned, visibly concerned.

Soren gave a warm smile, as he looked behind them, "Why don't you ask him yourself?"

The owlets looked at him oddly before turning around to see whom the raconteur was looking at, only to be surprised by the presence of the storyteller's brother, Kludd, who was giving quite a cocky smirk as he approached the owlets. His body was less bandaged then it was two weeks earlier, for most of his wounds healed, and it no longer hurt to walk around. He still couldn't fly, for his shoulder and abdomen was still injured, but it wouldn't be long before he could again.

Kludd only laughed as he said, "Well, thank you, brother, for the intro, but I think these owlets want to hear the rest of the story...the _whole_ story."

Soren replied with a smile, "Very well, Kludd, be my guest!"

"Yeah, Mr. Kludd, tell us the rest of the story!" Another random owlet pleaded. It was safe to say that the owlets took kindly to the scarred Tyto.

The older brother just smiled at their enthusiasm, as he then indulged them...

'The older brother suffered a mortal wound from the stab...but with the valiant effort of his younger brother and the band, as well as his queen, the brother was taken back to the legendary tree of Ga'Hoole, where a wise nurse was able to cure him of his wounds. The older brother was sent into a deep slumber, of course, but with the voice of his parents, his loyal brother, and his lover...he was able to awake once more...'

"And?" Pete asked, obviously curious.

Kludd smirked, 'Well, the great king of Ga'Hoole, seeing how the king and queen, once filled with hate, had performed acts of heroism that night, and with help of the legendary hero and the young brother, the older brother and his beloved was given a second chance...and in that night, the two brothers were reunited after years of fierce jealously and hate, and they both found love with the most beautiful owls they had ever met. And as for the older brother and his soon-to-be mate...they became the eyes of the night, the silence within the wind, the talons through the fire, and the shield that guards the innocent, whom defend the weak and vanquish the evil...they became...Guardians. The End' He finished.

The owlets cheered at the end of the story, quite satisfied with the happy ending.

"Actually, Guardians-in-Training technically."

The scarred Tyto leapt as he turned to find Ezylryb, who was watching the scene with amusement. He had recovered quite nicely as well over the two weeks, and with help from Bubo, he had managed to repair his ruined metal talon, allowing him to walk probably once more.

"Ezylryb!" Soren exclaimed as he approached him along with Kludd, who was surprised to see the old owl as well, "What brings you here?"

"Oh, a couple of things really. But mostly, I wanted to see how you were faring, Kludd. That was quite a story you told, aside from the slight altercation in the end." The old owl mused.

"Well, sir, it's not like it will not be true. Me and Nyra are going to be beginning our training tomorrow." Kludd defended.

"Of course." The old owl laughed, "And what a day that will be. It looks like the chronicles will have to be amended once more!"

"Indeed it shall!" Soren nodded, giving a glance to his brother...but then, he noticed something under Ezylryb's wing, "Hey, sir, what do you have under your wing?"

"Oh, this?" Ezylryb gestured to the object jokingly, before smiling, "Let's say it is a very important book I would like both you and Kludd to see." As he then pulled it out and revealed it to the two brothers. Kludd and Soren stifled a gasp as they saw the title of the hardcover book:

'_The Two Brothers of The North_'

"The Two Brothers?" Soren asked, astounded, "How…where did you find this?"

"It was in Surtr's hollow when we were making our getaway. When I saw the name, I thought of you two, and figured that it would be best that it goes to you two, given how it had a great part in your life. That, and it had that letter…"

"You mean the one from Surtr?" Kludd questioned. Nyra indeed told him about the letter, and even showed it to him.

"Aye." Ezylryb nodded, "But I have reasons to believe that this copy is a very special one."

"How so?" The younger brother chimed, a bit curious.

"Well, the fact that it is very old and dusty, I think this book might be one of the first copies written about that fateful day. In fact, while I was cooped up in my hollow, waiting for my talon to be repaired, I took a quick look through it, and I found the names of the two brothers."

"Really?" The two brothers asked in unison, their curiosity now peaking, as Kludd requested, "Mind if we take a look?"

"Be my guest. I bookmarked the page for you." The Whiskered Screech Owl smiled as he handed the book to Kludd.

The barn owl, excited but careful, slowly open the ancient book to the said marked page, slightly coughing from the dust, and as he looked over the page…his eyes widened, and his beak gaped in shock.

"Kludd?! Are you alright?" Soren asked, noticing the paleness in his face.

Kludd did not answered his question directly, as he muttered, "No way…it cannot be…"

"Lad? Is everything alright? You looked like you seen a scroom." The old owl questioned, himself concerned with the scarred Tyto's change of expression.

The Tyto just looked at Ezylryb and his brother as he quickly explained, "I have to go and do something…"

He handed the book to Soren hastily and dashed out of the library, confusing the two Guardians.

"Huh…wonder what got into the boy…" Ezylryb muttered, not understanding his behavior.

Soren himself was wondering as well, as he then looked at the page that Kludd was reading…only to be met with the same shock as well, realizing what had perturbed his brother.

Not finding time to explain, Soren quickly passed the book to Ezylryb as he then said, "I'm sorry, sir, but could you watch the owlets for a moment? I have to do something as well." With that, the barn owl ran after his brother, leaving the Screech Owl utterly puzzled.

"Geez, him too?" The old Screech Owl grumbled, as he shook his head as he went to attend to the owlets, "Kids these days…always flying off to do something with no explanation whatsoever."

Kludd quickly ran through the winding halls of the trees up to one of the tree's higher, less-frequented branches, ignoring the confused and suspicious glances of the owls he passed. This glances were nothing new to him, as he didn't expect them to accept him just like that, and honestly, he found it much better than what it could have been, but that thought was not in his mind…no, his mind was focused on a completely different matter.

Soon, the barn owl ran outside to one of the tree's upper limbs, slowing down to a stop to catch his breath. As soon as he regained his expended oxygen, he took a quick glance around the branch as he started walking out, and soon started to call out…

"SAMUEL! SAMUEL! WHERE ARE YOU?!"

No replies came…instead, the sound of another owl approaching the branch ensued as Soren eventually arrived on the branch, much to Kludd's confusion.

"Soren? What are you doing up here?" The barn owl demanded.

"I could be asking you the same thing. You kinda took off on both of us." Soren explained.

"Well…you see…" Kludd replied, not sure how to tell his brother about the owl that he had been seen two weeks back, about the prophecy he made, and how he knew of all the happenings during those four nights. The thought of that sounded yoicks even in his head. Nonetheless, he answered with a sigh, "I am trying to meet with an owl I met two weeks back…a snowy owl, yay tall," Kludd gestured raising a wing above his head, "Has this weird grin on his face…"

"This owl you speak of…did he happen to claim that he possess the ability of starsight, by any chance?" Soren questioned, feeling that the owl he had met with the night Kludd and he reunited might be the same owl that he is looking for.

Kludd's eyes only widen in surprise as he then exclaimed, "Wait…you met Samuel?!"

The young brother nodded, "Yes. He came to me the night you and Nyra first arrived at the tree, told me that you were going to be coming, that you were going to need my help to defeat an evil that was greater than Metalbeak, Nyra, and you put together…he said that he knew you."

The scarred Tyto only became more surprised, not to mention confused, "That is yoicks…I met him that same night as well. Told me the very same things…but the funny thing was that he had this annoying habit of disappearing and reappearing, Nyra couldn't see him when I was following him (that is how I got here in the first place, you know), and I kept hearing his voice over and over…"

"Kludd." A sagely voice chimed.

"Just like that!" Kludd shouted, glad that someone just proved his point…before realizing that _someone_ justproved his point. Soren and Kludd looked out to the end of the branch to have their sight greeted with the old yet wise figure of Samuel, the snowy owl starseer, the one responsible for the events that were set into motion, looking upon them with the same happy grin as he did before.

"Samuel!" Soren and Kludd exclaimed, quite surprised to see the old owl once more.

"Soren, Kludd, how nice it is to see you again." The old owl addressed with that chime in his voice.

Kludd's shock eventually turned into annoyance as he then snarled, "You have a lot of explaining to do!"

"Whatever do you mean, Kludd?" Samuel asked, his expression seemingly pretending to not know what he was talking about.

"Oh, please, Samuel, enough with the games! I know who you are, we saw the book!" Kludd exclaimed.

"Did you now?" The snowy owl questioned with a raised brow, "And who exactly am I, then?"

Soren stepped forth, as he knew the answer, still not believing it himself,

"You are none other than an owl from the legend...you're the young brother of the Two Brothers of the North!" He stated in a accusatory manner, although his dismeanor spoke none other than shock.

Kludd continued, "Not only that...your brother is the one who had died at the talons of the Deathbringer thirty years ago...and most shockingly...his name was...was..." He didn't finish for the name that was on his tongue was so much of a astoundment that he could not say it...

"...Go on..." Samuel requested, completely unfazed by the revelation that Soren had said, not denying it nor accepting it.

With those two words, the scarred Tyto continued... "Mine...your brother's name was Kludd, just like mine..." Saying those words seemed alien to him as much as the situation that he and his brother was in...they were faced with one of their two greatest heroes that had fought a great evil that they themselves defeated two weeks ago and that his brother's name was just like his...

Samuel, keeping his calm expression, then replied, "Indeed, lad...my brother's name was Kludd, just like your own, for your father, who had cherished the story almost as much as you two, named you after him when you hatched." Kludd and Soren suddenly looked at him with the familiar disbelieving looks from when they both met him before, as the old owl, who could read minds surprisingly, just smiled, "No, I am serious. Don't forget that I know everything about you two..."

"So...that means all that had happened in the story...all of it was true?" Soren asked, quite starstrucked that he was meeting with another legendary hero.

The snowy owl nodded, "Yes...it is true that thirty years ago that me and my brother had ventured from our home in the North upon hearing words about this menace they dubbed the Deathbringer, and it was us that had brought the two warring nations together to fight him and his army, influenced greatly by the Cannabis Regime..." Samuel's face turned to that of sadness and guilt, "And it was us that fought him...and it was my brother that sacrifice himself to save me..." Upon saying that, a tear fell from his eyes...

Soren and Kludd shared sorrowful glances as the young brother asked, "What happened to you...after that day? According to the story...you just disappeared..."

"Not exactly...but pretty close..." Samuel admitted, "You see, my brother was the only owl in my life that I had left, our parents died in the wars back in the North, and we always took care of each other, taught each other how to hunt, fly, and battle...and when he passed...I just fell apart...I could not carry on without him...I stopped eating...drinking...all I wanted to do was fly as far as I can away from the painful memories...and eventually, my wings just stop flapping...and I was no more..."

"No more?" Kludd asked, "Does that mean that you're a..."

"Scroom?" Samuel asked in a sad voice, as part of his body, if in response to the scarred Tyto's question, became transparent, "Yes...for the last twenty-nine years..."

Feeling a few of his questions answered, Kludd continued with another one, "But if you're dead...then why did you come to me and Soren that night?"

The old owl sighed as his sullen expression lightened to a somewhat glad one, "Because I wasn't finished yet...my brother came to me and told me that I was not ready to pass into the afterlife...that there would two young owlets much like us a little over a decade later, who would be torn apart by darkness and jealousy. So, instead of completely dying, I became one of Glaux's honorary starseers, for they had sensed my ability of starsight...much like yours, Soren..."

"Wait...Soren has starsight?!" Kludd exclaimed, as this was the first time he was hearing of this, he turned to his brother, who was just as surprised.

"You knew?!" The barn owl exclaimed, "But...but...why hadn't you told me?!" He stated indignantly.

"Oh come now, Soren, would you have believed me if I told you?" Samuel rebutted, amusement returning to his voice, "And to be fair, I was not for certain that your abilities were sound. But now, as I talk to you, I know for certain you have the gift passed down from generations to generations."

"But I don't understand...if you had starsight...why did you tell me I would continue down my path if I did not change if you could see the future?" Kludd wondered, his tone sounding like 'Why would you scare me like that?!'

"Well I couldn't simply tell you everything. Starsight can really go so far, but even then it cannot tell you of every bumps that you would encounter along the road. I said you could continue down your path to self-destruction if you did not look into your heart. I did not know if you would actually heed my advice or not. Besides, it is not healthy to rely on visions to decide your future. It is only you that have to take act...for sometimes, destiny is what you make it out to be." Samuel sagely explained, "And from what I saw that night...you had shown that you are above your darkness..."

Kludd flushed a little, rubbing the back of his head with his good wing, "I can't take all the credits...if it wasn't for my brother...I could have done something so awful..."

"But you didn't, and that in itself shows that both you had changed for the better...both of you." Samuel warmly smiled, "I had seen you both grow from little owlets just hatched out of their eggs into the owls I see before me today...and the fact you had defeated the great evil that threatened this world thirty years ago and restore your bonds as brothers...that makes you both worthy of carrying our titles as heroes. And I could not be prouder."

Soren and Kludd both beamed in pride as he said that. Even though it was perturbing that a scroom had been watching over them for so long, it gave them pride to be commended by a hero such as Samuel...but a question lingered in one of their minds...

"So what happens now?" Kludd asked.

Samuel gave another light laugh, "Well, given how you two are now together again, you reunited with your family, my presence is no longer required...so the time has come for me to say farewell and ascend to the reaches high beyond The Beyond..."

The two brothers withheld a gasp, as Soren quickly stammered, "But Samuel, what if something horrible happens and Kludd and I are separated again? What if we lose sight of our paths?"

But the snowy owl just smiled, "Oh that can never happen, Soren. I had seen the future, and as far as I can see...you two will remain together as brothers...but this newfound path you are on will be strifed with trials and tribulations as well as tragedy...but along with it, joy, love, and peace as a whole. As long as you two remain together, and with your familys and friends, as well as your hearts and dreams...you will always pull through. I'm sure of it."

Kludd and Soren shared glances at each other, as his words sank into both their minds...soon, a small smile grew on their beaks as Kludd then addressed him, "Samuel...thank you...thank you for intruding my chamber that night and telling me that prophecy...I know I was a bit harsh...but there is no words that I can say that explains how damn grateful I am to you. Because of you...I have my family back...Nyra...thank you, Samuel, thank you."

"And it wasn't for you, I would have never gotten my brother back." Soren stepped forth, wrapping his wing around him, "For that I am grateful."

Samuel only beamed with joy as he saw the two brothers...they reminded him so greatly of themselves at their age...he did not need starsight to see that their future was bright. Normally, he had intended on telling them of one important matter, a grave matter that would spell trouble for Ga'Hoole and the owl kingdoms once more...but why would he want to ruin their newfound peace? Surely if they could defeat a foe as lethal as the Deathbringer, the uprising darkness will surely quail to them...for now, all he could say, as his body began to glow with a holy light, surprising both Kludd and Soren...

"It is both of you I should be thanking...you two gave me hope...hope that light can live on, no matter how far in the darkness it had fallen...that any bonds, especially that between brothers, can be mended..." Samuel blinked as a tear fell, when suddenly he felt a wing tip on his shoulder...

The duo was surprised, gaping, once more as they saw another snowy owl appear behind Samuel, much taller than him, and his feathers more rugged...but the starseer himself was more surprised than either of them, as the old owl whispered...

"Kludd?"

The older snowy owl gave a smile much like his, and with pride, he said, "You did good, brother...real good. Let us go...father and mother are waiting for us..."

Samuel only let out another tear as he then looked back to the brothers and said, "Farewell, Kludd and Soren...may you two live a prosperous life with your soon-to-be beloved mates and with your family and friends...and always remember..." As he then gestured to his brother, who looked to the two Tytos, smiling as he knew what his brother was meaning...

"It matters not whether you follow the path of light and order, or the path of darkness and dominance, it matters not whether you have the strength, the intelligence, or the courage, all that matters is that you follow your heart and dreams, as no matter how dark the path it leads you on, it will always guide you true." The snowy owl named Kludd stated, citing his very words from thirty years ago.

With that, the two brothers, Samuel and Kludd, the legendary heroes who had slain the vicious hagsfiend, Deathbringer, spread their wings and in a flash of holy light, blinding the two young Tytos, they ascended from the mortal world for the last time, now together to spend the rest of their life in peace for which they deserve...

As soon as the light faded, the two Tytos looked at where the two snowy owls were, as Soren, quite astonished by the turns of events, not to mention sad, just whispered, "They're gone now..."

"Yes they are...but at least they are together now..." Kludd agreed, feeling a bit sad to say good bye to the owl who changed his life.

But he knew that the sadness would pass...Samuel fulfilled his part in the world by a great amount. He and his brother saved the owl kingdoms, and he himself, even past his death, restore their once-severed bonds, never giving up on either of them. It was only fair that he would get to enjoy Glaumora and make up for time lost with his brother...as for him, there was still much to be done. He had a long road ahead of him before either he or his beloved would achieve redemption, a _long_ road...but hey, at least he will not go it alone...for he was Kludd, ex-soldier and king of the feared Pure Ones, son of Noctus and Marella, soon-to-be mate of a beautiful tyto named Nyra, friends to a group of loyal owls known as Gylfie, Digger, and Twilight, a new apprentice to the legendary Lyze of Keil, also known as Ezylryb...but more importantly, he was a brother to a young, kind, and innocent owlet named Eglantine and to a barn owl who had risen up to become a knight of which he dreamt of, brave, valiant, and true...

And honestly, unbelievable to himself actually, the only thing he cherished now, more than any crown or any kingdom now, was no more than the great sense of...

Brotherhood...

* * *

**Credits**

_When you try your best, but you don't succeed..._

**Cast (In order of first dialogue)**

**Kludd/Metalbeak Alba - ****_Ryan Kwanten_**

**Servant - ****_Lee Norris_**

_When you get what you want, but not what you need..._

**Nix Voltaire - ****_Jensen Ackles_**

**Samuel - ****_Randall Duk Kim_**

_When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep..._

**Nyra 'Canner' Camille - ****_Hellen Mirren_**

**Maurice/Skarmoris - ****_George Newbern_**

_Stuck in reverse..._

**Jatt - ****_Leigh Whannell_**

**Jutt - ****_Angus Sampson_**

_And the tears come streaming down your face_

**Soren Alba - ****_Jim Sturgess_**

**Otulissa Emerilla - ****_Abbie Cornish_**

_When you lose something you can't replace_

**Gylfie Whitney - ****_Emily Barclay_**

**Digger Speo - ****_David Wenham_**

_When you love someone, but it goes to waste_

**Twilight Nebul - ****_Anthony LaPaglia_**

**Lyze of Keil/Ezylryb - ****_Geoffrey Rush_**

_Could it be worse?_

**Boron - ****_Richard Roxburgh_**

_Lights will guide you home...and ignite your bones...and I will try...to fix you_

**Horace Plithiver - ****_Miranda Margoyles_**

**Noctus Alba/Grimble - ****_Hugo Weaving_**

**Marella Alba - ****_Essie Davis_**

_And high up above or down below_

**LaRoche - ****_Rob Riggle_**

**Barran - ****_Deborra-Lee Furness_**

_When you're too in love to let it go_

**Pip - ****_Matt Stone_**

**Alice - ****_Glenn Close_**

_But if you never try you'll never know_

**Eglantine Alba - ****_Adrienne DeFaria_**

**Pure One Spy - ****_Mark Hamill_**

_Just what you're worth_

**The Echidna - ****_Barry Otto_**

_Lights will guide you home...and ignite your bones...and I will try...to fix you_

**Young Kludd - ****_Zachary Gordon_**

**Young Soren - ****_Bradley Steven Perry_**

**Young Nix - ****_Frankie Muntz_**

**Harris Hawk - ****_Simon Baker_**

_Tears stream...down your face...when you lose something you cannot replace_

**Fatal - ****_Joel Segel_**

**Dave - ****_David Spade_**

**Adam - ****_Adam Sandler_**

_Tears stream down your face...and I..._

**Strix Struma - ****_Emma Thompson_**

**Miranda Canner - ****_Sela Ward_**

**Young Nyra Canner - ****_Emma Watson_**

_Tears stream down your face...I promise you I will learn from my mistakes_

**Zephyr - ****_Donald Sutherland_**

**Surtr/Metalbeak Camille - ****_Joel Edgerton_**

**Young Maurice - ****_Lucas Gilbertsen_**

_Tears stream down your face...and I..._

**Solidor - ****_Liam Neeson_**

**Madame Plonk - ****_Maggie Smith_**

**Bubo - ****_Craig Ferguson_**

_Lights will guide you home..._

**Aunt Finny - ****_Cloris Leachman_**

**Deathbringer - ****_Chris Hemsworth_**

**Wortmore - ****_Ted Lewis_**

**Uglamore - ****_Byran Cranston_**

**Stryker - ****_Joe Mantegna_**

_And ignite your bones..._

**Dewlap - ****_Imelda Staunton_**

**Lucius Canner - ****_Matt McKenzie_**

_And I will try to fix you..._

**Kludd (Samuel's brother) - ****_Harrison Ford_**

**Song played: ****_Fix You_**** by ****_Coldplay_**

**Created by: ****_Shen's General_**

**OCs created by: ****_Shen's General_**

**Written By: ****_Shen's General_**** with assistance from ****_Synchronized Harmony_**

**Editted By: ****_Shen's General_**

**Based on the movie directed by ****_Zack Snyder _****and ****_Warner Bros._**

**Based on the book series and characters written by ****_Kathryn Lasky_**

**Based on characters from ****_Feoran Pride_**** and ****_TearfulFriend18_**

**Based on stories written by ****_bluecatcinema _****(with exception of Digging Deep, Siege of Ga'Hoole, and Sins of the Father)**

**Special thanks goes to...**

_**Master Crane**_

_**Charlie B. Barkin**_

_**Humphrey Loves Kate**_

_**Crazybird101**_

_**TearfulFriend18 (Formerly known as Mic O'Malley)**_

_**Elete12**_

_**Synchronized Harmony**_

_**LydeaBlaze**_

_**Vegeta12345**_

_**GodzillaFan2012**_

_**sonicfighter21354**_

_**aldovas**_

_**FtDLulz**_

_**jjhatter**_

_**sailor-starlight101**_

_**X1Mobius**_

**And thanks to all the other less-frequent reviewers and guests, and to all (who hadn't already been mentioned) who had fave and followed this story.**

* * *

Meanwhile, back at a certain ravine within the territory of the Pure Ones, two avians make their way into the main hall of their hidden hideout, a scruffed-up red-tailed hawk and a golden eagle with a less swollen bump on his noggin...

"HELLO!" Harris called, "Is anyone there?!"

No one replied, much to the hawk's chagrin.

"Unbelievable...you lose one fight against a group of bloody owls and forced from your home for two days and eveyrone flies the coop! Am I right, Fatal?" Harris bitterly remarked.

"I am handsome...I am strong...I am Fatal..." The eagle panted, quite exhausted by the trek they had made up to their home.

"Well, that certainly puts a kink in our plan, doesn't it?" The hawk growled, "Now we are all by lonely-"

A loud metallic clank echoed throughtout the hollow halls of the ravine, causing both hawk and eagle to jump in fear, as Fatal cowers behind Harris...only for the red-tailed hawk to realize that his 'strongman' was expecting him to protect them.

"Wait a damn minute! This isn't right!" Harris shouted, "Get your tailfeathers back in front!"

Frightened by his leader's command, the giant eagle steps in front of him...but that did not change anything, as a dark voice echoed...

"I'm afraid it doesn't matter either way, Harris..."

Both Harris and Fatal jumped again as the leader demanded, "WHO SAID THAT?!"

No answer was made...but sounds of battle claws tapping against the floor of the hideout ensued...when suddenly, Fatal, going completely yeep (which would be considered impossible, as he was not an owl), was blindsided by two giant blurs into a darkened part of the hideout, as soon sounds of an eagle getting wrestled down by two bumbling pairs of talons echoed along with it. Harris was immediately horrified as he looked towards where Fatal was sent, but his attention was completely diverted towards the metal clanking...as soon, the moon shine reflected off a uniquely-designed helm...

"No...no...no...not you...anyone but you..." Harris stammered, as he slowly backed away, unfortunately tripping backwards, but continuing to back away from the dark being.

"But yes, Harris...it is I...your worst nightmare..." The being explained, as a part of his body was soon revealed in the moonlight, showing off the colors of his brown and orange feathers, as well as his fiery orange eye...

But as soon as Harris saw this, his fear immediately was replaced with confusion and annoyance as he said, "Wait a minute...you are not Skarmoris! Who the flying fuck are you?!"

The grass owl let out a dark chuckle, "Names are of no importance right now...what is important now is that I have a business proposition for you..."

"What makes you think I would help _your _kind?!" The red-tailed hawk spat.

"Quite simple, really..." He smarmed, as he gave a nod, prompting more glints of silver helms to shine in the moonlight, causing the hawk to gulp in fear, "I am in need of more soldiers...and you are in need of power...but together...we all lust for one thing...and if you join me...we shall receive that..."

"Oh?" Harris asked, his fear replaced with intrigue and suspicion, "And what pray tell would that be?"

Nix's sole eye and his ominous crown of power gleamed with fury...

"_Vengeance..._"

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

* * *

**A/N: Well...it is hard to believe but...I HAD FINISHED MY FIRST MAJOR PROJECT ON FANFICTION! (Cheers and applause ensues) And just in time for spring break! I just want to say with a few closing words how fun it was to write this. It was hard, no doubt, but the rewards was aplenty, especially all the reviews and compliments I got from you guys! Again, I had to make quite a few adjustments, but I think I am completely satisfied with the ending. As I look back on my first few chapters of this fic, I could only look in shock of how poor my writing style was in comparison to what it is today. Like Elete12 had said in his review last chapter, I had really improved over the months. And for those who were wondering how Samuel fit into all of this...now you know...and yes, I named his older brother after Kludd (or according to Samuel, he was named after him). And for those who were wondering (namely sonicfighter21354), Kludd and Samuel were the ones that wrote that plaque back in chapter 13. But for those sad with the fic now ending...the story is far from over, for coming soon to the archive, to serve as a sequel to the hit fanfic 'Between Brothers' and the second installment in the Pure Redemption Saga...Me and My Shadow. But I should warn you, this fic will be darker than Between Brothers and will probably be rated M for blood/gore and possibly a mating scene. So...if you have anymore things to say about this fic past your reviews, I do have a forum (at the top of the screen, you can't miss it) named Pure Redemption Saga Discussion. Also, I will be working on my Kung Fu Panda chapterfic named Second Chance. Also, while waiting for my next LotG fic, I suggest you read other fics on this site, such as bluecatcinema's LotG series, Tearful Friend's Skies of Darkness and Blazing Inferno, as well as Crazybird101's new LotG fic, Behind The Crimson Eyes, and check out all the other authors mentioned in my special thanks list. So...for the last time for now...READ AND REVIEW! AND MAY I SEE YOU ON THE NEXT FANFIC! To top this off, I found this quote from my dear friend, LydeaBlaze, which is very fitting for this story...**

"_The only thing that is stronger than anything else is the bond between siblings, especially between siblings, whether it be two sisters or two brothers…"_

- LydeaBlaze (fellow author, great artist, even greater friend)

_**Artworks are truly appreciated and would compliment this fic nicely.**_


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